All of them
I am the one nobody calls
by name,
They always refer to me
with improper pronouns.
I suffer in silence, for my voice
has become inaudible,
That is why I write to you.
Words give me the power that was taken from my voice,
They allow me to write my name.
Hope, Hope, Hope.
And as the saying goes,
Hope is the last to die.
Who am I to disagree?
I am alive because I refuse to die
before making all
my words our
anthem of freedom.
And I want you to know that I am all of
them, the woman on the corner, the saleswoman,
the nurse, the doctor,
the mother, daughter, granddaughter, cousin, niece,
grandmother, girlfriend, wife, professional,
housekeeper, soldier, strong, sensitive,
enchanting, scientist, artist…
All of them are me, and I am all of them…
Melissa Dinda
(in Melissa Dinda, Elementos, p. 59)
