Who Am I For You Poem by Nidhi Bhati

I am neither defined by a symbol
nor can I be known by the colours
of blue and pink that serve
no purpose other than
just adding one more layer of
discrimination and definitions
to my gender.

I mean can you really make out
the gender of a baby me
just by a certain shade of
coloured threads on my clothes
and paint on my walls.

What if my parents decide to
dress me in black and
paint my walls green?
Does that make me a demon
who is also a leprechaun?

Ok, so if not colours
you decide to move on to the
next available box of categories
that you keep in mind, after
giving birth to a girl or a boy!

But what about me?
I am neither and also both.
Also, why can't I be both or not be either?

Why is there this urgency to be defined
by a gender that is understood and
acknowledged only if you have
a clothing section designated
for you whenever you go shopping.

I thought i was free,
free from the moment
the doctor cut my cord at birth,
free to define my own
definitions in life, but then;
I remember, that just like the
colour of my walls,
this wall of gender
can also be undone.