sometimes people ask me how i write these poems
how do i find the words
always the answer is practice

every time i tried to explain myself
  and was scolded for making excuses
every time i spoke to myself in the shower
  reciting and revising for next time
every time i held back tears, held back breath
  as conversing became combating
every time i was asked to restrain myself
  lest i become angry, and disruptive
every time i tried to reach the honest parts of the people that i love most
  and found only plastic laughter,
    a recycled joke

i've been writing these poems for a long time

~

page of a notebook with messy handwriting
"i desperately need to be understood
i desperately need understanding"
- R.A.P. Ferreira

i often get a single line stuck in my head - usually based on rhythm, sometimes content - this one was on my mind while i was writing

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