The Strong Tree

When I think of a black women I think of a tree

Strong brown and beautiful 

A tree that gives nutrients from her branches

A tree who roots run deep into the earth 

A tree who soil helps the earth go round

I also see the way people take advantage of the tree

They take her fruit with no appreciation for how long it took to grow

They uptake her roots without even giving credit to her beauty

They cut her down and expect her to continue to grow 

When I think of myself as a tree

I see the tree from Charlie Brown

I feel weak at my core and limping over from expectations 

I feel my roots are not as deep as those of my sister trees

I feel the nutrients from my branches are sour to those who taste

My trunk often weeps syrup instead of having a tough exterior 

I realized if I was cut down I’m not sure if I could grow back 

The expectation of my trees are intense

But yet they still stand and conquer

They still give the earth the soil it needs 

I am not that strong of tree

I also wished I was a strong as those other generous tree

I than realized i’m stronger than I ever thought I would be but I not as strong as I wanted to be

And I may continue to grow as a tree one day I may accomplish the strength that I wanted but I can not forget the strength I have gathered