Chameleon

I’m a chameleon
Changing
Censoring
Blending in to what I should be

Pretending that I, too,
Come from an upper middle class family
Where we have the tremendous luxury of ignorance

Not at all enthralled in poverty
Never knowing the throws of addiction

I have never bathed with a cloth
Because the water bill wasn’t paid

I have never used a shampoo bottle
As a makeshift fan
Because the electric bill wasn’t paid
In the height of a midwest summer

I have never seen glassy eyes
Pupils the size of saucers
Limbs slack
Expression blank as paper
Not able to respond to
“What’s for dinner?”

Never have I ever
Paid for a hotel room
For my mom to run away from her abuser
Just for her to go back
And pretend it didn’t happen

No, you must be thinking of someone else

I am not the person who put up flyers
After her mom overdosed
To fundraise for addiction resources

Because how could the theoretical me
Let my work raise money
For a funeral I wasn’t allowed to have for her

Her abuser got the final say, you see
Because the spouse must, of course, know best

I wouldn’t know anything about sleeplessness
From ages 12-18
Working as much as I can
And studying like I needed it to breath

Because every A brought me closer to escaping what I was born into

No, I’m just a girl
With endless support and love
That carried me to where I am today

Why would you suspect anything else?