They say "Smile"

¨They say smile¨

They say it

can´t be ´too hard´.

They say to smile &

to be honest

I want my response to be

to go piss off,

to go find someone else

who is probably

feeling the same way

I´m feeling now, but

worse & tell them

to smile & see if they

don´t give you a 

response that´ll 

shut you down.

They say to smile.

They say to smile & 

when I do

I wince. - it hurts -, but

I don't tell them

I dont give them

fuel to put on their fire,

I don't give them

fire to add to their fire

I just comply, grit my teeth

a low mumble &

just do what they say…

They say to smile &

sometimes I don't even

have the energy to

get out of bed

feeling more like

a piece of chewed up gum &

stuck on some surface

to dry out just to be

peeled off the force

just to get out my bed

this morning,

before this shift,

more all the above

than a human.

They say to smile.

They say to smile,

like being told to do so

is a command

that does not register

in my head.

They say to smile

They aren't smiling.

They say to smile &

I want to say

fine, but you have to 

smile first,

but I know that´ll

be seen as aggressive,

being a black woman

I already have

to deal with the

possibility of being

labeled as ´unapproachable´ &

now the risk of being

titled aggressive just goes with

the flow of the stereotype &

can't have that cause

I am no stereotypical woman,

I have no stereotypical overthought thoughts.

The say to smile &

I do.

They say to smile &

I don´t.

They say to smile &

I make eye contact

begging them to ask me again

instead of asking why

I´m not smiling.

Cause then that'll

be a push for

an actual conversation &

not a poem

but then what would

the point be

in being a poet