The news article said
wear Nike, Adidas, Puma
or you’re not cool
I couldn’t afford any of those
They laughed at
my shoes
my teeth
my hair
my face
I could never look right
They cornered me
behind the dugout
five to one
I couldn’t do what they expected
They cornered me
along the fencing
four to one
and laughed at
my shoes
my teeth
my hair
my face
They sat next to me
said
I would never be enough
They cornered me
on the baseball diamond
on the soccer pitch
in the classroom
in the halls
at work
they still laugh at
me
my clothes
my writing
it never stops
and the words
slowly kill me