asks the girl who woke up at 8 a.m.
unlike the day before
when she had class at that time
because fuck class, right?
why learn about the rest of the world
when the early morning lighting is the best
for showing off fake cleavage of breasts
held too high, by enough foam
to smother any intellectual thought
but not enough to kill the hope
that Brad from math class will throw
her tits a like
fifty dollars for a bra that
will ensure at least five comments
but fuck the drive thru workers, right?
the ones that ask if you want to donate
a dollar to help fight world hunger
around the world
girls’ clits are being cut
out with razors
their vaginas sewn
shut until their wedding
day when a man
30 years older
rips them open and
people are being shot in the skull because
of the amount of melanin in their skin and
hundreds of thousands of children
have no clean water to drink and
their ribs stick through their skin
sharper than the blades used
for circumcision.
but thank god for her
blessing all 1,000 followers
and just maybe,
if she comes up with a caption good enough,
she’ll get one more
Andrea O’Boyle
Honorable Mention, Distinguished Voices in Literature Poetry Prize
This poem takes on the ambitious task of responding to contemporary issues by forcing us to re-examine our own lives and priorities. This is a poem with the potential to make something happen.
–Christine Kitano, Contest Judge, author of Sky Country and Birds of Paradise
Andrea O’Boyle is a Communications major with a minor in Professional Writing. Her writing is usually a product of her love for all things living and her immense belief in the power of words.