Unlike Mother

I spend my life walking on broken glass;
The shattered remains of your highly unjustified expectations.
Behind I leave pieces of who I truly am
Because your expectations do not fit me
The way the glass slipper fits the foot of a Cinderella.
I am no princess because I cannot be what you want me to be.

 Every day my life slips away
Because you think the world stops for you.
Your egocentrism hurts like the spindle of a spinning wheel
In which case I am Aurora stopping my life for you.
I am no princess because I will no longer wait.

 And I pretend I am ok with the beast you’ve become
Because, like Belle
I hold onto that last glimmer of hope
That everything will turn out ok.
I am no princess because I have run out of hope.

 You steal away who I truly am
And I cloak myself in a false identity
Trying to run from the life I have to live
A wild Jasmine among the tamed roses.
I am no princess because I do not want this life.

 And I spend my time searching for what I’ve lost
Despite how you turn into a raging sea.
I am held back by my rulers
And scolded like Ariel for being who I am.
I am no princess because I want my own life.

 But the lies hurt me most
Penetrating my heart like the sharpest of knives
And you hide my soul away because
You are embarrassed by my Snow White beauty.
I am no princess because I will not be fooled.

Then you tell me that life
Is about facing my fears
But when the only thing I fear is you
Taking away my identity
The only thing I’ve to hold onto
I cannot be the princess you want me to be.
I am no princess because you are no queen.

-Annie