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I wish I could be like the ocean

No one asks the ocean why it’s fluid, it just moves and it’s okay

I wish I could be like a cactus

No one questions cacti for defending itself, it just protects and it’s okay

I wish I could be like flowers

No one judges a flower when it blooms, it just opens up and it’s okay

I wish I could be like the leaves of a tree

People actually celebrate when their leaves change colors, heck even when they fall, even when they grow back. They just change and it’s okay

I wish I could be like a butterfly

People actually dedicate sanctuaries to witness their metamorphosis; they even pay to see it

They transform and it’s okay

I wish I could be like the moon

No one asks the moon with whom it sleeps at night, because who the heck thinks the moon sleeps at night anyway?

It just lights up and it’s okay, it moves and it’s okay, it expands and it’s okay, it contracts and its okay, it even affects our behavior and the tides, and the plants and the animals and its okay

Oh to be like an ocean

To be like a cactus

To be like a flower

To be like the leaves of a tree

To be like a butterfly

To be like the moon

But I am all these things

I am all these things

I am all these things

Can’t you see?

But you’re too busy trying to figure out if I am he or she

You’re too busy wondering why my hair changes colors by the week

You’re too busy questioning why I don’t have kids

You’re too busy wanting and wanting and wanting from me

Wanting information, wanting education, wanting labor

Wanting my body without accepting me

You’re too busy, You’re too busy, You’re too busy, To just let me be

But with or without your support or understanding

I AM all these things

I am fluid like an ocean and move my waves as I please

I protect myself and my people like a cactus when I have to

I open up like a flower when I feel nourished and secure

I am ever changing like the leaves of a tree

I transform like a butterfly over and over again

I light up like the moon and influence the ones connected to me

I am all these things, even if you’re too busy or refuse to see

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about the author:
Eliza Lopez (they/she) is a non-binary, queer, Mexican person of color of Indigenous descent. They are the founder and creator of Mariposa Healing, a community resource that supports people in their healing transformation by providing mental health and spirituality services and education. For more of her content, follow Eliza on Instagram (@mariposahealing).

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Sacrosanct is a community blog that amplifies the voices and art of LGBTQ2IA+ BIPOC. As a digital space for marginalized folks to self-define, self-actualize, and heal, Sacrosanct is firmly situated at the core of intersectionality while also providing mental health and community resources made for and by LGBTQ2IA+ BIPOC. To fund these LGBTQ2IA+ BIPOC artists for their contributions to the platform, consider leaving a donation here and follow Sacrosanct on Instagram and Facebook.