Please, put me in a box
BY ANNA KORECKÁ
Please, put me in a box is a poem on the conflict between trying to be unique and generalising the things around us to make the world seem simpler. One can describe complex things such as gender, sexuality or mental health with a single word, calling people a "type" or deciding they are the enemy because of a certain trait. We wish to be unique, yet change ourselves into an ‘easy to understand’ stereotype.
- which box are you in?
How natural to put things that are missing cover into a box
Perfectly moulded into the shape of what we want them to look like
Ignore their detailed structure carved into them by early mornings and late nights
They have a cover now, they’re safe.
I don’t want to spend my life wrapped up in cardboard, but then -
Please, put me in a box, I want to feel safe
It is wonderful that one can use a single word for my gender, mood and the way I feel about politics
Simple is beautiful
And so is ignorance
If only the world would really be black and white
One could rightfully and forever determine whether I am
Good, bad, happy, sad, fragile or hard to break
Draw it on my forehead and file a few bullet points report about who I really am
Nothing else to distract them
No cons on their list of opinions
No voices saying they have missed the details by looking at the whole picture
And the whole picture by looking at the details
We wish to be unique, yet make the world small enough to fit into our pockets
We wish for the world to be kind, yet are thirsty for its problems
That are always left to be the other side’s flaw
That are always left to be bad
Without discussion
And so are we. (?)
It is easy to feel empathy
But it is hard to understand that no one else has the brain you do
- all is fine as long as you can be part of your like-minded herd
Please, put me in a box, I need to be right
Make me a part of your group
All is much simpler knowing this one aspect of our lives we share makes you feel the same
About every inch of the universe
That our thoughts are intertwined
And our hearts beat at the same tempo
We are perfectly in sync presenting ourselves to others, our own freedoms forgotten
Dressed alike with our plus or minus label on our sleeves
Really sounds like an ideal way to be
Make me a part of your group
I swear I will cherish your life view forever, never think about anything you wouldn’t
I swear I will forget about everything that ever made me myself
Please, put me in a box, I have to belong