This is a piece for an open mic event called “fire” for women with fire in their bellies…
I hope you enjoy 🔥
They said
It’ll burn
They said
As if I hadn’t burned before
As if I didn’t know how hot the flames could get
I burned for him
I burned because of him
I burned for them
I burned because of them
I learned to be afraid of the fire
To shelter from the flames
Yet I couldn’t resist it
Always called home
Like a moth to a flame
My own destruction
Beconed
Shrink they said
And yet called me back again
I burned for him
I burned for them
I hide from the flame
Afraid
Staring from the shadows
Thinking the fire was dangerous
Unless it was for someone else
The more I burned
The happier they were
The more I shrank
The more they grew
They liked me in the shadows
While I stared at the flame
Desiring it
And fearing it
All the same
Cloaked in pain
They made me insane
While I vanished in the dark
They grew in the light
Happy
As I struggled
Flames
I was scared of
And yet drawn to
As I bent until I broke
And flames burst from me
I realized I was the fire
They were drawn to
Surviving on my passion
A frenzy for those who are nothing
Taking it for themselves
Turns out
The light I saw in them
Was cast from me
The fire was nothing to be feared
I am the flame
They convinced me I was the ash
Left over
Ruined
Useless
When I broke open
Only flames poured out
They taught me to be afraid of myself
They liked me weak
Fearful
Powerless
They liked scooping up my intensity for themselves
feeding off me
Like all the women before me and after me
In front of me
And around me
Fearful of ourselves
Our own power
Wicked they said
Control her they said
Cage her they said
But at the moment i surrendered
Fire
And power
Brimstone
Poured out
As I rose
And they cowered
Love,
Tonya