DRIFTING AWAY

“The dichotomy and misogyny prevalent in our society today are endemic and corrosive issues that we need to be consciously aware of and work hard to eradicate, despite the fact that these issues are being ignored in our patriarchal society…”, says my feminist philosophy instructor as she reads from the textbook. I cannot take the flamboyant grammar and inconsequential discussions anymore, so I do one of my favorite things; I tune out. I tune out and I start drawing up my TTD (Things to Do) schedule for the rest of the week (Fun stuff).

Anyway, I tune in for a second and hear another tirade about Mary Daly, so I tune out again. This time, I decide to reconstruct and put finishing touches to a poem I had begun composing about a particular neighboring area, which takes approximately 45 minutes to get to from the city I currently reside in.

A great majority of the people that live in this particular area do not have a lot in terms of wealth, but they do have something in abundance; trees. Therefore, I decided to write something about the beloved Jackson County trees, which I encounter very often. Enjoy!

Don’t maltreat me because I am tiny
Water me because of my potential.
Nurture me, although I might become clingy,
Remember I can produce sustenance for all.

If you choose not to cater to me,
I will choose to sprout and tower high
With my roots implanted
And my branches reaching the sky.

I refuse to yield to selfish longings
Making space for my brothers, sisters, and cousins.
Always willing to divide my share of sunlight and soil,
For they too need to stretch out and grow.