Do I Dare Disturb the Universe?

I read lines like these in poems by the greats: T.S. Eliot, Dickinson, Billy Shakes, Baldwin, Morrison, Alvarez. I am influenced by literary minds with imaginations far beyond mine, or so I think.

WHO AM I? I am here to say, nay, to declare that I am enough. I can make the world stop, with words powerful enough to make the rotations reverse and your connotations disperse into the immensity that is my thought process. Watch me, as I bring forth all my ideas from the drawing board, chop them up and blend them into delicious word stew, good enough to reheat and eat for three days after, just leave the sauce in the pot and add more potatoes. I am that good. And I’ve seen the good things that come to those who wait, I can firmly say that I am BLESSED in a big way. I’ve learned that blessings don’t come easy, and I wasn’t taught to have a voice so the way that I overflow with words and the fact that I don’t hesitate to say them loudly speaks to my resilience. It speaks to all that I will accomplish, things so grand they scare even me, but I’ve never been alone.

HIGHLY FAVORED. That’s me. That doesn’t mean that I am not intimidated at times by the same bright minds that prompted me to pick up the pen and write. WRITE. I say that with a sigh and with my heart in my hands. I want to write like my soul depends on it. I want to write like my bones will fall out of my skin if I don’t have my words to hold them upright on this Earth.

Do I dare? Do I dare make everyone notice me and how great and powerful my words can be? I know that everything happens for a reason. I know that when someone shows you who they are, believe them, not the words they say. My words ring true and my actions will follow. I’ve learned not to respond to everything, and how to choose wisely who I give my energy to. I know that all things come at a price, but the price for putting pen to paper is the only one I’m willing to pay with everything within me.

I believe that I will create something that touches the lives of all who encounter it. I know that I will write something truly brilliant one day if I haven’t already. I want to be the quote in the first line of someone's manifesto one day. An inspiration. Let my words sink deeply with every inhalation and become a part of a best writer’s anthology someday. I haven’t begun to tap into the stories and worlds that well up within me for fear that it’s just too big and I’ll fail. But I am willing to leave all that behind today.

This is my proclamation: I will use my words for good, I will tell the stories that deserve to be told, I will bring honor to all the girls whose voices were taken away, I will leave my imprint on the world. I will make my mark. I will disturb the universe in such a way that there will be no turning back.