by Emily Yates
A good woman:
She is patient
She is kind
She does not boast
She is not proud
She does not dishonor others
She is not self-seeking
She is not easily angered
She keeps no record of right or wrong
She does not delight in evil
But rejoices in the truth
She always protects
Always trusts
Always perseveres
She never fails.
“Why do you give unkind people so many
chances?”
my therapist asks me with 2 minutes left in our
session.
All I can think is: that’s just what I was taught to
do…
A bad woman:
She is assertive
She is independent
She does not waiver
She is proud
She does not take shit from others
She is not self-effacing
She is not easily silenced
She draws boundaries for herself
She does not delight in evil
But rejoices in the truth.
She always protects herself
Always trusts herself
Always perseveres for herself
She is powerful.
***
Emily Yates is a queer, disabled poet who lives in Los Angeles, CA with her partner and their geriatric dog, Bandit. She enjoys using her poetry to unpack patriarchal expectations of womanhood. Her poems explore healing and finding herself.
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