Not Your Average Woman
Born to a woman who had no want for a child
I was an unwanted little girl
Growing up with olive skin
I was a different little girl
Having no family around me from a young age
I was a lonely little girl
School was not an enjoyable experience
I was a bullied little girl
Wanting to be one of the “in-girls”
I was told you’re “ugly for a girl”
Sports were never my thing, always last to be picked
I was a fat little girl
Classrooms gave me that claustrophobic feeling
I was told I was a stupid little girl
Growing up in the social care system
I was never a cared for little girl
Dreams of becoming the next Juliet Bravo
I was told that’s no job for a girl
Giving birth to my daughter age just 17
I am no longer a girl .. I am a mother
Holding down 2 or 3 jobs to make ends meet
I am a cook, a cleaner, a driver, a consultant, a bouncer, a nurse, a wonder woman, I am a mother
Trained in Bodyguarding and Firearm Skills
I was told this is no job for a woman or mother
At 30 Bodyguarding was my life but a surprise was fated,
I was again to be a mother.
One Domestic Violence relationship later
I was broken, he was in custody but I am still a mother
Choosing career over relations, focus became my passion
I was no longer just a mother, I was again a woman
Becoming a business owner the very 1st time
But being told you’ll never make it as a woman
Getting robbed for thousands by a male client without a care in the world
He knew there was nothing I could do
After all, I am but just a woman.
Taking a risk to save my business sent me to jail
But a mother away from her kids is not even half a woman.
The loss of my maternal grandmother
My inspiration as a woman
10 years later I have a big successful business,
Now people say I am their superwoman
But I fight the same battles now 20 years later
I hear the same noises
This is no job for a woman
Going back to uni, did my degree, passed with Distinction
Yet the men and some teachers for 2 years told me
You have no capability or place here woman
If I cry or show emotion
Its ok, I am a woman
If I don’t cry or show emotion
I am hard hearted cold kind of woman
If you know me, you will know I am warm hearted, loyal and funny
But if I speak up for myself
I am a mouthy sort of woman.
I am no longer that lonely little girl
And I won’t be quiet because I am a woman
Why should I be treated differently?
Just because I am a woman?
Should I earn less than my male counterparts?
Apparently so because I am a mere woman
Should I have been made to marry?
Because it is birthright and passage as a woman?
Why must I be a lesbian to work in my industry?
Obviously because I am a woman
I am no longer that lonely little girl
And I won’t be quiet just because I am a woman.
Krista Brown