Still, I Slay

Sometimes you have to tell yourself what others wouldn't dare. Sometimes society’s standards make it hard to look in the mirror and counter what they tell you, but you just have to know the truth for yourself. You have to look straight ahead deep into the eyes staring back at you and say the uncomfortable until you own it. No matter the delays or setbacks or setups you’ve been through, you still got it! So in an ode of honor to Maya Angelou’s still I rise and a snap of respect for Nikki Giovanni’s Ego Tripping let me tell you why “still, I slay”....and YOU do too.


A young black girl
From a misperceived place
Dreams so big
I disfigure labeled space
Adversity attempted to keep me down
For so long I only saw the ground
But, I am not a victim
I don’t fall down and lay
I heard the voice in my heart say
I slay!?!
Insecurities, fears, garbage and nonsense
My identity is more than you can sense
That’s why they thought they could destroy me
Yet, like a true queen, I slay
Are you intimidated
By my silent pace?
The quiet storm is coming
I suggest you embrace
Because still, I slay
Black women come in so many shades and tints
Why so surprised at exotic black exquisiteness?
I sit up straight to see what life has intended
Posture of regality deeply imbedded
You stare so hard
But that wont help you understand
I rebel against you preconceptions
I am the baddest in the land
I could not hear your cackling
                Over the ocean crashing
When I made it welcome me with a wave
Why? Cause I slay
I did not see your raging fits below
 in my tall giraffe-like grace
I slay
The fiery lioness within
Never means to offend
She is a feline of honor
In true queen fashion
I slay
I slay,
Yes, I am
Because, I slay
You should learn to respect
Before you end where my fears lay
And still, I slay