• Sia’s Breathe Me 

I’m made of stone with a concrete soul 

As you chisel away my pieces

the darkness leaks out of my cracks

You will never see my core

the center of the earth

My molten heart

The fire in my eyes is obscured

by cool pavement

As I let you walk over me

Dismissing the beauty around you that I am willing the provide.

 

• Shane Koyczan’s To This Day

When I was young, I cut my hair off. First to the shoulders, then the middle of the neck, finally to the length I wanted. Inspired by the pixies I wanted to be like. In grade five, I got my first pixie cut and I was so proud. In grade five, I was called my first cruel name. Every day I got questions: “Are you a boy now?” “Are you gay now?” There is no ‘now’ I am still the same girl I was but I just chose to express myself in a new way.

They hurt me; but what hurt the most is when the boy I liked told me I looked like an ugly boy, so I kicked him in the nuts and pushed him down a hill. In grade five, aggression became my defense. For years, I believed that no one would love me for simply being myself.