The world tried to filter me,

To screen me before I came.

They told me, "This is what we want to see,

Please disguise your ugly pain."

"No one likes a whiner," they'd say,

"so PLEASE hide your depression.

Remember that every area is gray,

but only certain crimes will teach a lesson."

"You're blonde, so don't act smart"

(as if that even matters)

"Hold your tears in, even if you have a torn-up heart"

(But what if I want to scream my pain from the rafters?)

The world tried to filter me

cookie-cutter barbie me

smother me

drown me

make me like all the rest

still not sure who to impress)

Go ahead and try,

I won't leave this ring without a fight.

They tell me not to love myself

To turn my head at inequality;

Put feminism on the shelf,

because it's a frivolity

(and women have no polity).

They tell me "Don't ask too many questions

Keep your mouth shut,

you're

just

a

girl."

Well, to society: Here's a message

You're just an oyster, and I'm the freaking pearl.

I am a person, I am a woman

I can think for myself and see through all your lies,

Your words fall through like sand,

Too bad you didn't realize,

Not everyone will fit your mold,

And by that I mean me.

I refuse to become a puppet for your sake.

With no filter, I declare for MYSELF,

"I am free."