The vibrant orange blaze
Ripples burns across my skin
Flames ripping scars in its wake
And cutting in
My seething blood seeping out
And leaving the taste of metallic in my mouth.
The smoke rises
Choking my screams and encouraging my chance to hide this.
Starting all over again, inside my room
But it’s better than thinking of you.
To those who didn’t listen the first time,
This is stop touching me part 2.
Warning: this is where I plan to wash my hands good as new.
To anyone who thought they could touch someone without permission, this one’s for you.
It’s because of you that I want to rip the skin off my bones
With the hope that I’d never feel you there, again.
Disregarding the word no
And everything else I command with it.
But You’ve never felt my skin light up in fire
never knew what it’s like for that weight to
Crush in tighter.
Being ignored when you say,
“Stop it, now!”
Sitting in a classroom with your assaulter a few seats down.
Staying awake at night only wondering “how?”
Well, I’m done pretending I can burn off the layer of skin you touched, it’s more than that deep.
With these flames tearing through the roots in me
I need to burn them out
I have no more energy to apply the healing salve,
Because my scars are still there and I can’t ignore that now.
So with Title IX; unresponsive,
My control in a watered-down conscience,
I’m done.
I don’t care if everyone in this very room is telling me,
“I need to forgive you”
I will never forgive you for
making a nine-year-old girl
Teach a grown-ass man how to
fucking behave himself.
But what am I to do?
When the only thing that seemed to put out the fire licking away at my skin
Is the sea of people who know what I’ve gone through.
Now let that sink in.
Every time a person used their voice,
Told me that I also deserved that choice.
I’m done feeling like I’m only smoke and background noise.
This time I’m diving down deep
When I tell you to stop touching me
I’m ignoring the words you put on repeat
And won’t accept the lies of
yet another man considered untouchable
Unlike me.
So I’m here with the waves that drown out the shame, as I water the flowers that bloom out of my mouth.
Sprouting on the tip of my lips.
their unraveling folds, spreading out to the brink of it.
Growing out of my charred skin,
repairing the damage conflicted within, and encouraging reconciliation in my skin.
I’ll let their thorny stems twist around your necks and strangulate any doubt of power left
Then drag you to the garden beds
and lay you to rest.
I’d now like to direct my time to any survivors left,
Take these words I’ve conveyed.
And know that yours
Whatever they are
Are not mistakes
Don’t let anyone stop you from blossoming out of the rain
Know that you are taking pain
And turning it into power and something brave.
Know that it’s for your sake.