I once joined in with NaPoWriMo (National Poetry Writing Month) which I thoroughly enjoyed. However, I completely forgot about it this year until now. I may not be able to join in every day, but I certainly would like to participate as often as I can.

Today is Day 7 and this is the prompt: Identity

And now for our (optional) prompt. In our interview, Kyle Dargan suggests writing out a list of all of your different layers of identity. For example, you might be a wife, a grandmother, a Philadelphian, a dental assistant, a rabid Phillies fan, a seamstress, retiree, agnostic, cancer survivor, etc.. These are all ways you could be described or lenses you could be viewed through. Now divide all of those things into lists of what makes you feel powerful and what makes you feel vulnerable. Now write a poem in which one of the identities from the first list contends or talks with an identity from the second list. This might turn out to be kind of a “heavy” exercise, emotionally, but I hope you will find the results enlightening

I was not quite sure how to go about this, but I have written about my identity as a student nurse (powerful) being reprimanded by that of being a wife and mother (vulnerable). I hope it makes sense.

You study so hard to reach your goal, to become the best nurse you can be

Yet, here am I right under your nose, what about time for me?

At work, you are calm and deal with the stress, ever so patiently,

Yet when you come home, you are tired and cross, and very impatient with me

You look after people who do silly things, that have caused a medical emergency

Yet when I tried things that made me quite ill, you were very angry with me.

I know your career is important to you, and you want to get your degree

But, don’t forget that you are not alone, you do have a family!

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