Golden

I throw a basket of dirty untruths at you
ignorant of its mark
Hoping to stir deep heart fluids
around and around so that it spills onto your skin

Amnesia always strikes me when it's the most unneeded
Forgetting your forced choices
and growing up ill-fitting to this golden skin color
Forgetting the lack of models to tie yourself around

You cry silently for me to stop draining your heart
because you didn't think you had enough in the first place
to power your way out of confused desolation
It took me jumping so high into the air that I hovered
over your herstory to see the red flags of victory and the white ones of struggle
spread across your short 21 years

I look at my body and see the same flags,
stuck in one way or the other
but now instead of poles and cloth, they're just holes and dots
It's easy to empower amnesia when judgment rules over empathy

I stand before you with hidden struggles and slightly translucent scars
ready to wait with you on mountains
ready to attempt to redefine and reword national anthems
ready to believe in something bigger than God
and ready to hold you tight reminding you that love transcends broken pipes.