When him and I were parting ways
He left me with one single phrase
"Don't go back to him"
I thought he ceased to remember
Of my affections for you, still tender
And it shook me where I stood
Because I never thought I could
Due to distances between hearts
And many years apart
I never thought you thought of me
What an insecure mentality
That turned out to be untrue
And now I am here with you
What an ironic twist of fate
That has been plopped on to my plate

I'm scared for the girl
Sitting across from me in a hijab
Looking at her phone
Fear in her eyes, panic in her mind
We live in uncertain times

In reality
Any leader is only as powerful
As the volume of supporters
The people who feed into the violence
And the hate that is spat in their general direction
From all directions, from many people
They can choose to absorb it
Or ignore it completely
And keep living their lives in love
Reach out their hand to a stranger
Someone who may be in trouble
Someone belittled for believing
In something different from the normal
Diversity is what makes us remarkable

The saddest part
Is that I am concerned as to whether
The beautiful people I see
Are scared by me frequently looking over at them
Just a white, privileged, middle class girl
Trying to depict them in a poem
Articulating how I pledge to be there
To demonstrate that not everyone
Is scared of what they don't know
What is different from their own

The woman that lies within
A 5' 3" frame, chocolate hair, Irish name
Laughs too loud, embarrasses herself
Would give up so much for someone else
The strangest things could make her cry
She is afraid of being hurt and butterflies
Writing helps her cope
She loves the smell of Old Spice soap
Food is love and she cooks often
Seeing true emotion makes her heart soften
When she feels, she feels it all
She tapes writings up on her wall
Habla Español y le encanta
Caring for others is her mantra
She's silly, loud, inappropriate, and sure
And it is enough just being her