Dear Daddy,
You’ve been protecting me from the day you knew I existed.
You’ve rushed by mother’s side when her stomach was ******.
Apparently you and mother smiled so much,
When my eyes repeatedly scrunched.

I’m 12 now daddy, and being a girl is hard.
I always get teased for wanting to play footy.
“It’s a boy’s sport,” they say. Have a boy card.
It never meant anything but it really should.

I’m 14 now daddy, and I got called a **** today.
Of course I shrugged it off as a joke.
I was wearing jeans and never done anything with a boy.
You would’ve yelled at them; wouldn’t you say?

The funny thing is daddy,
you might’ve called a girl a **** at school.
Not of harm maybe, but isn’t it harmful?
You want to protect your daughter; I know you do.

Here’s the thing though daddy.
Maybe if boys learnt from when they’re young,
From their own daddy,
That teasing and leaving out girls
of a game of footy,
Pulling out the boys only card,
Or calling them a ****
A *****
hurts.
Maybe being born as a girl wouldn’t be as hard.

I hate myself.

I’m not pretty enough,
I’m not skinny enough.

I can’t seem to do anything right,
I always ***** myself over.

I hate myself.

Getting myself into trouble,
Why can’t I do anything right?

I’m sorry I’m not a good enough daughter,
Or friend, or person.

I hate myself.

I have a tendency to push people away,
But then wonder why nobody is there for me.

I don’t know how to ask for help,
I feel like nobody is there to listen.

I hate myself.

I hurt myself physically and emotionally,
I wish I could be happy.

I hate myself,
And I want to **** myself.

The sun that greets me in the morning,
The stars that bid me off to sleep,
The clouds that promise sunshine,
The moon that pays a smile.

The cool, flowing water.
The fire that keeps on burning,
The wind that whispers in the silence,
The earth the brings forth life.