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Sunday, October 22, 2017

Children Should be Seen and Not Heard

When my dad said 'It's my way or the highway',
'Sit down and shut up'
'Children should be seen and not heard.'
When my teachers said 
the correct answer is X
and I wanted to discuss why.
And on and on until, 
I learnt to censor myself. 

And now, deeply, from deep down, like a rising from the earth,
I'm called to raise my voice
to join those who have been singing a chorus 
of injustice, of repression, of invalidation.

Now, the Catalan defence of the right to self determination 
has triggered an avalanche in my personal history. 

For all those times I held my tongue, I bit my tongue, 
choked back words, clenched my teeth, fought back tears
because
I did not speak up.

I did not speak up.

Me too.

Now, the pieces of the past are falling together
gathering to form a solid foundation 
under my feet, where 
standing my ground, where
my voice rising
becomes the final piece of the picture.

It marks the end of my childhood,
now at age 46,
when I once said 'it's someone else's problem'
'they' will fix it.

It's a beginning.
Where I rise my voice to join the  chorus
of all those before me, to speak out,
to speak up,
to speak.

And one voice does make a difference.
Because I know you can hear me. 
I know you are listening.

And one day, I will join other pieces 
of the puzzle of your life
and I will be there as one of many
who come before us,  
as you too rise and speak.

Speak for your heart
your justice,
for your need, your right, 
to be heard.

It's a beginning. 

1 comment:

thecatalanway said...

I love this. Like a poem or a speech or just your thoughts.....and capturing so well the feeling of what is important and how we respond because we are ready to stand up for ourselves and others. And it helps to remember that there were times when we were not ready, when we felt too small or too angry or scared to open our hearts and our minds. So there will always be some people who appear not to care too much, because they haven't found that connection.....yet.