Afro So Big - Jae Nichele Poem by Denise Yoonai

To the people who asked me ‘why? '
When I cut all my hair off.
To the man online who said ‘some of y'all women need to tame y'all afros'
And to my boss who told me ‘I hope this whole natural phase ends soon'.

May I one day have an Afro so big,
It shuts your mouth before you open it.
May I one day have an Afro so wild,
It tames you.

So in command that when it says sit, you sit.
I want an Afro so big I could smuggle a pack of twizzlers in it when I go to the movies,
And when I sit in the front row, I block everyone's view behind me.

I want an Afro so hard, it sucker punches this one girl in class,
who tried to touch it on the slick.
I want an Afro that can do a neck roll and tell her,
‘Bitch, you ain't slick.'

I hope when I gain weight,
It goes straight to my Afro.

So in addition to economy and first class,
Airlines have to add a brand new section called
‘Dark and lovely with really big head rest'.
And in the event that, that plane crashes,
My Afro doubles as a floatation device.

I want an Afro so grand,
only Moses could part it.
So big it develops a cult following,
And fanfiction where it is put into relationships with other famous afros,
All of which it denies.

And when I have a depressive episode,
I want it registered as an official emotional support Afro.
So thoughtful it turns shrinkage into arms and gives me a high five.

I want an Afro so big it envelopes the solar system,
Becoming a representation of just how cosmic black women really are.

I want the kids I work with to be able to lift themselves up just by holding on to it.
I want an Afro so hard, I could shield my little brother from bullet wounds.

So soft I could use it to make a bed wherever I go and forget how often I feel like I don't have a home, I wanna make my Afro a home.
Where a mom could finally rest,
No longer having to pick up extra shifts to pay the rent.
I want an Afro that can express my gratitude to her better than I have.

An Afro with a bigger mouth than me that isn't afraid to use it.
An Afro so unapologetic, that it tells me the hard truths like look,
You need to grow up and forgive people who hurt you or watch,
Watch how effortlessly I let negative comments bounce off.

I want an Afro I can lose myself in,
Or find myself finally.

I want it to drag on the ground behind me and touch the sky at the same time
And when someone asks me, ‘why? '
I will ask them, have you ever seen something so free, and so wild?