WE + MEN

As a woman, I was once offered a seat,
It was not a table for me to speak; I was there just to eat—
To chew whatever was served, with a gritted teeth smile,
While my needs and desires were ignored all the while.

They wished for my figure to be slender and neat,
Yet my heart craved for more than the taste of defeat—
’Cause I wanted that meat; and this might be a call or a demand:
Hey, I’ve been pleading for greater than just the crumbs in my hand.

And yes, gentlemen have held doors open for me to take the lead,
But when I dare to quench my thirst, to fulfill my own needs,
Quickly, they shut the gate! It leaves me wondering, “why?”
I have the right to choose, so why can’t I decide?

My gentleness has been a proof that I do mean no harm!
How I dress, how I move, how I put to use my charm!
No, I am not a threat, you need not to be alarmed,
And I’m not doing anything wrong, so don’t you pull my arm!

Don’t you hold me back! Don’t you push me out the frame!
I am here, I am included, and I am part of this game.
I’m not a Shakespearean piece of misery;
Let alone a tragic muse;
I’m not a bet in the casino, while you have my worth to use.

We know, that's how we're shown in the books of history:
Me, a girl, is either a trophy or a battle’s casualty,
But we're more than that! I can tell you, if you can't see what I can see,
Well, who cares, anyway? As long as I believe in me.

I am a woman, and I am capable of making my own ladder.
I am Hephaestus in a dress with a hammer of amber.
And so, if you aim for a world which makes life so much better,
Then, perhaps, you should consider why Earth is a mother.

For women try; for women nurture; for women persist,
For women fight for equal rights; women insist,
For women won’t settle for a place of injustice; women resist,
For women love; for women care; and women exist.

Although, we do wish for no one to be discarded off the list,
What we ache for is our name to be included at least.
For women aren't girls, alone, nor are they just a she,
'Cause the moment you scream for women, you'll still hear the word, “we.”