Elikem’s Corner: Maybe, Just Maybe

They say pain makes us who we are
But I don’t want to be my pain
I don’t want to carry these burdens and scars placed on me

I don’t want to carry this feeling forever
This feeling that maybe Black girls like me do not deserve to be loved
That maybe we do not deserve to be free
To be seen, to be heard, to be felt, to be kept
That maybe we are nothing but tools for their crafts
A means of consumption
That maybe we do not deserve the ownership of our minds, bodies, and souls

I know that this pain will forever be mine but I want to move on
I want my feelings to flow and my words to be released from my mind
So that maybe, just maybe I’ll be finally free
And that maybe this pain doesn’t make me, me

Elikem’s Corner, a series of poems from our Editor-In-Chief, Elikem Thee Poet. These poems give insight to a piece of her world; her own lived experiences and the experiences of people around her.