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“I am a wind-swayed bridge, a crossroads inhabited by whirlwinds … You say my name is ambivalence? Think of me as Shiva, a many-armed and legged body with one foot on brown soil, one on white, one in straight society, one in the gay world, the man’s world, the women’s, one limb in the literary world, another in the working class, the socialist, and the occult worlds. A sort of spider woman hanging by one thin strand of web.
Who, me confused? Ambivalent? Not so. Only your labels split me.”
- Gloria Anzaldúa, from ‘La Prieta’
I found this amazing poem here, and it surfaced from a review of the teen book "Love You Two" which has a bisexual adult character that the main character struggles to accept. I'll blog about the book soon, but I was so happy that the review included that the bisexual uncle had an excerpt of Gloria Anzaldúa's poem on a plaque in his hallway that read:
Who me, confused? Ambivalent? Only your labels split me.
Words to live by. There's a danger in labels. That we see everything in binary: yes or no. zero or one. black or white.
The world, and each of us, is much more complicated, and colorful, and... beautiful.
Good stuff to think about.
Namaste,
Lee
3 comments:
MAN. That poem has impact. The only one bisected...isn't the poet. Thanks for this one, Lee. Truly.
I too LOVE that last line. Its a mojor shortcoming of society, the need to define things, and in turn define ourself (and others). Really powerful.
Beautifully said.
Pigeonholes are for pigeons.
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