A Little Extra

with everything that I am,
with breast that have fed,
the marks that snake up and down
my tummy and thighs,
my blood shot eyes
and stiff shoulders
and mind,
my calloused feet
and swollen tear ducts
no one wants to admit
that I’m more than just a good fuck,
that their touch runs deeper
beneath my veins
and trains of thoughts,
that what is asked from me
I’ve fought to be able to give
that I fight to be able to live
with the demons that drug me daily
that my mind is weary
and in need of another soul’s fury
that I need more than just fire,
that the rain has a way
of cleansing my desires
and that words are my earth,
that I stand on critiques and literature
that I still need to be nurtured

– B. Brown

I am not ashamed for being a little extra when it comes to my needs, because all of my adult life, I’ve had people take more than what they’ve cared to give to me. I am extra and I do the most because I am constantly trying to be the best me. So yeah, I am a woman who’s entitled to her needs.

(Art by Rekouane Kamel)