Mother never taught me to be a good girl
So I faced the world with my fists up
Dirt under my fingernails
Teeth ground together so hard they could chip
Hair tangled by the same winds
that spun me around
when I was nothing but a tomboy
with scabbed knees
Mother taught me to stand my ground
In front of brutal words and savage acts
Every time I was kicked or beaten
Every time I was pushed on my knees
And when the winds changed
to blow me on my back
I got up teeth ground together so hard
they could chip
until I lost count and forgot how to fall
Mother taught me to stand my ground
when there was no ground to stand on
No more hope left, no more winds
I became a force of nature
A spark that could burn everything around me crisp and crackling
Mother gave me her thoughts, her spirit
Her heart to wear on my sleeve unprotected
No armor to cover it
No box to hide it
No lock to vault it
Pulsing like an open wound
Helpless, hopeless
like an uncontrollable force
Mother never taught me to bite my tongue
And between my hard ground teeth
I spat a four letter word
The gilded curse that echoes in the winds
over the city, across the ocean, through the fog
Able to save me or destroy me