I am posting this poem, which I wrote in the mid- to late 1970s, in response to a conversation on Asakiyume’s LiveJournal about “fear of words.” Her article is here: http://www.apexbookcompany.com/blog/2010/06/fear-of-words/
“Words”
Words on a page
frighten me,
define me,
spell me out to strangers,
lock me up
in expectations.
I may not want, tomorrow,
still to be
the person that I am today,
but written words create
an outward mold I’m trapped into
without a choice.
Copyright © Elizabeth W. Bennefeld.
