Why must I prove
the cracks that I
once had
to have you believe
I am unbroken?
Why do you only
approve cracks painted
and glued with gold
that now shimmer
in the sun?
Why must my cracks
be welded
sanded
and polished away
instead of being jagged?
Why do the cracks
need be dulled
so you may touch
unasked, unwanted
and yet remain unhurt?
Why are these cracks
expected to be scars
instead of wounds
still clotting
still hemorrhaging?
Why can't my cracks
be what they are?
Shattered pottery?
Sawtooth metal?
Sore wounds?
You've created a world
that accepts cracks
that are beautiful
that are strong
that are healed
meaning that any of us
who are outside those
parameters are too
broken for your
"welcoming" society
I hope you learn that
by turning us away
you're turning away
the future which will
not remember you
because someday you'll
break, you'll crash, you'll
beg, and the moment you
don't fit your own rules
you'll be out with us too
And for all of your bluster
you'll fall short and once you're
alone our dripping gashes,
ragged edges, and sharp fragments
will be what is enshrined
Because I am concrete
filling in with lime
staying strong
and surviving
the tests of time
