Olive Skin

And it doesn’t matter

And you don’t exist

You and your love.

Oh the world is so sad

It’s a crying pain

A world where colours

Are fainting

Because of uniformity and grey.

I used to be blue and green

I used to speak loud and sing

But now you found me ‘olive skin’

And others said brown is a nowhere…

As dark as black.

What am I supposed to be

If what they say is not what I see?

I remember you

‘Cause you recognised me

With the skin I live in

And gave me the right

To be other than white.

But white is the law

White is the snow

White is our glow

White is the only row

The way to live

And to be here.

If the door is shut

Who will get it to open?

For it forever will be

The only way to get in.

Is you heart locked?

Is it locked too?

Why did you run away

If you were not afraid,

Afraid of dirtying

Your so sweet lips

With my kisses?

I wanted to run after you

But who could promise me

You wouldn’t ruin our chances

And my life over again.

If colourless is best

Then erase me, my love

Erase my colours,

Erase the green

Cancel the brown

By dealing white lies

And covering masks.

What about red and pink?

What about yellow?

I turned green, you said

You wouldn’t take me

But before others looked

Your hand had touched me.

I don’t want to know

No I don’t want to know

That you looked me in the eyes

And then saw

The colours of my spine

But still decided to go.

By Melissa Chemam