I came to age in the era of Destiny's Child, Alicia Keys, and EVE, and solidified my womanhood with Avril Lavigne guiding my style, my walk, and the company I kept.
We were coached on how to sit by Save the Last Dance
It was a time when you could be hood and pretty
You could be dressed like whatever and still have both girls and boys crushing on you, like when Alicia sang Falling. We all fell.
And rose again to sing to -Gangsta Lovin, rapping all of EVE's parts, not having a clue what she was saying but feeling real gangsta dropping those English words like motorbike exhalations
We were cool
Until it was no longer okay to bounce, as a girl
No longer okay to wear a tie with a tee
No longer okay to wear your cargo pants and just be, without someone asking if you preferred women to men.
We learned to cross our legs when we sat,
cover our mouths when we laughed
and hang out with other women.
