This piece is an introspective poem depicting how I have seen myself throughout my life. It was inspired, mostly, by a conversation about what people really see when they look at someone who is not presenting in a typical gender role or presenting as something other than the gender role they were assigned. This poem makes mention of only two people, myself and my wife.
What I see…
A little boy sees a girl and he is happy.
She sees a boy and he is unsure.
He sees a man and he is confused
The man sees a girl and she is happy.
He sees a girl and he is ashamed.
He sees a woman and she is happy.
She sees a man and she hides.
He sees a woman and she is calm.
He sees a woman and she is excited.
He sees a woman and he hides.
The man sees himself and she is unsure.
He sees a girl and she is timid.
He sees a woman and she is accepting of her faults.
The man sees herself and she is happy.
The woman sees herself and is encouraged.
The woman sees the past and wonders how she made it through.
The woman sees his wife and she is sad.
The woman sees the stress and wishes to help.
The woman sees the pain and she is sorrowful.
The woman sees her best friend and she is consoled.
I see the boy and the girl and they are one.
I see the girl and the man and the woman they became.
I see the man and the woman and they are one.
I see the woman in the man and she needs to be freed.
I was the boy, and the girl, and the man.
I see them all in the woman I am.
-Dana Rasmussen