mixed use
they used girls like me
instead of mannequins
in the glass windows
of the Limited Too
at the Fashion Mall
in Plantation, Florida
on weekends
underweight girls like me
they found us
slightly
more alive
than plastic
i imagine that sometimes
your weekdays are like
my saturdays were then
a public stillness
breathing disguised as nothing
a mandate (not) to make eye contact
a fear of
a hunger for
the laughter that could make it
all fall apart
they used girls like me
instead of iron
as anchors
on the Paideia High School track team
4 by 4 relay squad
all over Georgia
conveniently black girls like me
they called us
natural talent
i imagine that sometimes
your weekdays are like
my saturdays were then
a chronic inability to stay
between the lines
a dizzy aversion
to running in circles
a tight urge
to steal the baton
and run towards where home might be
forgetting the girls that depend on you
i have no way of knowing
what any day
any week of yours has been
but i want to know
how do you feel
useful?
*******
Duke Sexual Assault Support Services
No comments:
Post a Comment