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The Geography of Taking Up Space

breeannaksmith

You can keep your matchsticks trying to start a fire

These timbers of my legs hold so much heat 

I could keep a whole campsite warm all night


Spandex shorts stand no fair fight 

in containing these thighs 

that have never understood the term 'tamed'


Every time my legs take a stride 

they collide with the ground like a beating of a drum, 

the kind that makes your ribs quake from the vibration


My feet may have stopped moving 

but my thighs and ass still shake 

like they have something to say 

and won't stop talking 

until they are good and ready


You think I'm just writing about my legs and ass? 

Nah, I got a whole map of my body 

that deserves to be explored 

by some brave wilderness adventurer 


My collarbone is a valley

where whispered prayers 

collect from tongues 

that dare to taste divinity


My tits are the full moon 

Rising over mountain peaks 

Making wolves howl at their majesty 

You honestly think you can contain the moon? 

She knows nothing of those wired cages


My back is the mountain's spine at twilight 

All soft curves and sharp ridges 

A silhouette of dark and shadow 

Against a sky surrendering to sleep


My stomach makes the flat earthers believe 

that this world is round 

Worth every climb, 

every venture 

Every peak conquered 

Yeah, these curves Could teach Columbus 

a thing or two 

About discovering new worlds


My arms look soft from afar 

But don't be fooled 

Beneath this velvet skin 

These arms have cradled storms 

Lifted fallen stars 

And still remain gentle enough 

To hold tomorrow's dreams


My hands are mapmakers 

Fortune tellers 

Every line in my palm 

A river leading to an ancient story 

Or new wisdom


My eyes hold the legacy of my grandmother's gaze 

Some days still as ice 

Others rolling like storm clouds 

Most days they're the ocean 

Depths that hold both calm and tempest 

Ready to weather any horizon


I know how to make room for more of me 

These tiger stripes etched in my skin 

Tell stories of expansion, 

of growth 

Of a body that knew its worth 

Before my mind caught up 

These bones still ember-warm

Every curve and edge still glowing 

With that ancient heat that whispers: 

Take up space, my darling, 

You were born to burn bright

 
 

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