Poem: Autobiography (Tanka)

I.

The years pass on by
Put away my childhood dreams
marble effigies
embox them in vaults of stone
and never resurrected.

II.

"You must study hard
graduate, get a good job
help the family
then think about what you want.
That is your duty in life."

III.

Obedient child
strong in intelligence but
lacking in wisdom:
trade one cage for another
from daughter to mother, wife.

IV.

Lifelong devotion
and I will always be there
always smiling and
never complaining of the
insults and the disrespect.

V.


Then one day it breaks
not in the heat of anger
but cold clarity
"I am better than this and
I deserve so much more too!"

VI.

My soul awakens:
there is a wide world out there
one for exploring
I pack my bags and just go
and leave the dead weight behind.

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