When I was a Girl
I wanted nothing more than to be just like my brother,
And behaved accordingly:
   short hair,
   adventure books,
   dirt and grass, and
   skinned knees, and
   climbing trees—
     and the rusty poll that held the street sign for McKenna.

When I was a Girl
my Girlhood was not gendered to me,
for others though—
   adults—
it needed to be clear that I
   was a girl,
   was still a girl when acting like a boy.
Tomboy.
A word I could not shake well into Womanhood

When I was a Girl
we played in the woods between houses,
pretending to be elves
   rough-hewn bows and fishing poles
   (old broken branches and braided kitchen twine).
We danced in the Fresh Air,
lived out stories of
   adventure
   soul-mates
   hardship—
No understanding of
   romance
   gender
   sexuality.
Concepts that had not yet captured us and held us in place.

When I was a Girl,
I was simply free to Be.
Wild and unruly as any other Child.

05/04/2025

Posted on 05/04/2025
Copyright © 2025 Anita Mac