Slam Poetry: Here I Am
Here I Am
Here I am,
Standing on a street corner with a sign around my neck,
That says, Show me my respect,
Youre baffled, I grin,
From living with my parents what feels like forever and all of the sideways glances I get from random strangers I feel a severe lack of respect,
So I stand on the corner not begging for money, but respect,
Because I am just like you,
I strive for independence any way I can,
I stretch myself to fit others ideals of cool, only to snap back like a rubber band that wont hold anything shut,
Im too small, in a world that looks through people who stand on street corners,
Problem is, Im just like you, going from day to day trying to get by anyway I can,
Thriving on those precious moments of bliss before my feet hit the ground and reality body slams me back into my place,
Because I am just like you, I bite my fingernails, I am nervous theyll figure me out one day that I have no idea who the hell I am,
That I hide it behind all these clothes, flashy fun words, and comic books,
I am the classic maybe even textbook mental case,
Paranoid, always afraid theyll figure me out, Im insecure, floating around the Internet of life without a pop-up blocker or virus program following me,
I run into trouble all the time, and a voice pops up and says, dont do that, because then youll lose the respect youve gained from those few who matter,
Because I am just like you, I use humor to mask uncomfortable feelings and laugh at my own jokes to make myself feel better,
I get in an argument with someone and one of the first things I envision is them bleeding on the floor from my hitting them, only problem is I dont remember silencing their opinion, so I can never know if I really did it,
Because I am just like you, I am afraid of getting angry because if I do someone will get hurt,
Because I am just like you I sit here on this corner with a sign around my neck that says,
Show me MY respect, I know theres some out there for me but I cant find it, so please will you show me where it is?
Because I am just like you, and if you show me, maybe I can show yours too.
Here I am,
Standing on a street corner with a sign around my neck,
That says, Show me my respect,
Youre baffled, I grin,
From living with my parents what feels like forever and all of the sideways glances I get from random strangers I feel a severe lack of respect,
So I stand on the corner not begging for money, but respect,
Because I am just like you,
I strive for independence any way I can,
I stretch myself to fit others ideals of cool, only to snap back like a rubber band that wont hold anything shut,
Im too small, in a world that looks through people who stand on street corners,
Problem is, Im just like you, going from day to day trying to get by anyway I can,
Thriving on those precious moments of bliss before my feet hit the ground and reality body slams me back into my place,
Because I am just like you, I bite my fingernails, I am nervous theyll figure me out one day that I have no idea who the hell I am,
That I hide it behind all these clothes, flashy fun words, and comic books,
I am the classic maybe even textbook mental case,
Paranoid, always afraid theyll figure me out, Im insecure, floating around the Internet of life without a pop-up blocker or virus program following me,
I run into trouble all the time, and a voice pops up and says, dont do that, because then youll lose the respect youve gained from those few who matter,
Because I am just like you, I use humor to mask uncomfortable feelings and laugh at my own jokes to make myself feel better,
I get in an argument with someone and one of the first things I envision is them bleeding on the floor from my hitting them, only problem is I dont remember silencing their opinion, so I can never know if I really did it,
Because I am just like you, I am afraid of getting angry because if I do someone will get hurt,
Because I am just like you I sit here on this corner with a sign around my neck that says,
Show me MY respect, I know theres some out there for me but I cant find it, so please will you show me where it is?
Because I am just like you, and if you show me, maybe I can show yours too.