I will take my rightful place on the stage,

And I will be myself.

I am not a cosmic orphan

I have no reason to be timid.

I will respond as I feel; awkwardly, vulgarly

But respond.

I will have my throat open,

I will have my heart open,

I will be vulnerable.

I may have anything or everything the world 

Has to offer, but the thing

I need most, and want most, is to be myself.

I will admit rejection, admit pain, admit

Shame, admit outrage, admit anything and

Everything that happens to me.

The best and most human parts of me are

Those I have inhabited and hidden from

The world.

I will work on it.

I will raise my voice.

I will be heard.