some days,
i can't breathe
with the weight

of the courage
of my convictions

the courage
to be human
to say the hard
things at what is
never going to be
the right time

to slowly wrap
my mind around
the fact that
my beliefs are
controversial

that what is called
inappropriate is only
my truth

the courage to embrace
contrast while others
question it

the courage to break
the surface of
the ocean that
is my pain

with every moment
that passes when
the most important
piece of me
is disjointed

the courage to
question criticism
and still accept
it's validity

the courage to
stand up for those
too broken to do it
for themselves

even when i
am one of those

i keep moving,
learning, struggling,
breathing through the ache

the controversy
that has been
my landscape
is my Sudan

and with courage,
i am still seeking
my nourishment
while my heart
longs for home