The beating.

I told them that I couldn’t breathe.

And All they did was proceed to pour water on me, telling me that I must adapt to what society throws at me.

So they shoved me down and told me to get back up

And when my knees were all bloodied up, they saw that I stood up tall, beneath them but tall.

they told me to kneel.

My head tilted down in defeat, they sewed my eyes shut, then told me to look up, to open my eyes, to look them in the eyes.

And I tried.

With all my might I tried.

I told myself to just keep breathing, get through the beating and look at them.

But after all my eyes were sewn shut.

-BP