By Amanda Eve Slattery
I am half dragon, who told you I will ever die at all?
– Nikita Gill, “The Moon Dragon”
Twists and turns on cold pavement.
Stonewall celebrations marked by
Resistance through existence.
Unknown even to ourselves at times,
Because our own names escaped us.
Long was the path and often lonely.
Only dreaming we might feel celebrated
Without masquerades or oversized coats.
A moment ago, the world seemed safer.
Had the knights gone to seek eternal rest?
But lying in shadows, the royal decree proclaims
It's not OK if you are not like me.
Sound the alarm, retreat into shadows,
We change our names, check our ID,
And make sure, make SURE to wipe off bold lipstick.
Even in the starless night,
We fight for a time when
There isn’t a need to fight.
All while acid rain pours forth from
Ladles balanced on fragile hands
Whose souls are threatened by rainbows.
Rising like phoenixes, we shout from the mountain
All that cannot be expressed in the marketplace.
We are dragons once thought mythical,
Now iridescently confident,
Owning our cobbled streets.
Fierce love stirs up inside
Protection of freedom and
The right to simple BE
Creatures, one among many.
By choice, our caves protect us.
But they cannot contain us.
Because
We are still here.
We contain multitudes.
And we will not be silent.