LEA'S SONG

Did he really just say that?

Did those words just come out of his mouth?

Did he say that? Did he say that? 

Oh God…

Guess I’m back in the city 

Where you’re just one more face and you feel itty-bitty

Folks are shitty 

Oh God…

I’m shocked and awed 

By the people who form to society’s mold 

Living life the way you want is not a crime 

I’m going home 

And my parents will ask if I’m dating again

But I still have met no man who’s worth my time 

I may have short hair, but I’m not a dyke 

So go take a hike 

You male chauvinist pig

Who are you anyway? 

I’m tired of men who think they’re in charge

With egos so large 

That they turn a deaf ear

To every word you say 

So stop the neglect and have some respect

Connect with our minds, not our looks 

Us women are more than your nannies and maids

And we’re sure as hell more than your cooks 

My friends are all hitched and paying off debts

While I’m making bets 

On how long it’ll take 

To see those knots untied 

Who says that a girl can’t live on her own? 

I’m happy alone 

And I don’t need a man

To make me satisfied 

You can spell success without M-R-S

Unless all you’re after’s a ring 

But think of the world that you miss while you chase

Some romanticized, fantasized king 

In Africa, life was freer

I would eat and pray and love my way 

Toward joy I’d never felt 

Foreign smiles and skies for miles brought me such clarity 

Newfound temerity 

To play the cards I’d been dealt 

But now that I’m back, it’s so goddamn hard 

I’m bruised and I’m scarred 

From degenerate dicks who’ve walked all over me 

At school and at home, online and at work 

I’d go so berserk 

Playing “Cool Girl” to guys for all eternity 

Pretending is fine, for dreams such as mine 

To shine on the stage or the screen 

But endless pretending’s a devilish deed 

That’ll shackle your heart so it cannot be freed 

And if your heart is lost, then how the hell can you survive? 

So set all your boundaries

Don’t lower your standards

And screw all the assholes 

By whom you’ve been slandered 

Keep friends in your circle 

That you can pay heed to 

Take care of yourself 

Do whatever you need to 

To find inner peace

And feel alive