I rise & shine!

I think I am
Resilience.
You slap me, thrash me
And kick me
And push me to the wall.
But see, how
Still, I bounce back
And excel
With your every blow
Blow after blow
I look you eye in eye,
Questioning.

I think I am
Strength.
See, how
I don’t break
With aggression and exasperation
And pain and frustration

I think I am
Courage.
See, how,
I rise and shine.

See, how
I crush your very resolve of silencing me.
See, how I succeed to defeat you
As I raise my voice
Of course I cry, pleading what is this living hell!
But I just don’t scream and yell.
I also raise my voice by wielding my pen.
That gives me strength, courage, resilience
And I think
That’s me.
A woman.