He picked me up,
picked me out,
from all of the boys.
He took me home
took me to bed
he was a columnist.
Rewriting my life
with a few words,
‘You are a girl,’ he said
pulling me in for a kiss.
‘You are not gay,
you are just a girl,’ he said
transforming the world.
Born in Middlesborough, raised in Corbridge, a ‘tireless ambassador for the arts’, Michelle Dee is one part of Hull’s Women of Words collective. Well known in her adopted city for her written work, charting cultural change and work in diverse communities.
She’s published online and in print, has appeared at Write To Speak, Freedom Festival, Hulloween, Spoken Weird, Bar Wotever (RVT) Follow her on Twitter @msmichdee or check out her blog where this poem first appeared. Plus, there’s www.culturemarathon.co.uk
Celebrating Change 