My Life, Skewed Glass - by Sharon Drapeau

If you look at my life, what would it look like? Would you see my happy marriage? Happy children? Would you see me? Would you see all the past that made me who I am today? The doubt. The pain. The resistance. The resilience.

What does life look like through the skewed glass of another? Can you see the flaws up close? Will you judge them more harshly than I do?

If you look at my life, it looks like a politician's ad for office. A multiracial, happy family in a middle-class neighborhood. I represent what certain white people might call a “good one”. Non-violent. Non-militant. A community-oriented volunteer. I also know that they’d rather have me anywhere but here.

If you look at my life, you’d see that I am a self-aware Black woman yearning to learn even more about what lies beneath my surface. My melanin does not define me, but it is a component of my foundation.

If you look at my life, you’d see beauty in my curves, my smile, my children. You’d see my love, my laughter, and my light.

If you look at my life, you’d understand that I want the best for you. I see you. I see you. I see you. Because when I look at your life, I see me.