Just A Little Bit Less

By: Madi Miller

I wonder how life would work

if we were all a little bit smaller.

If we had fewer ideas,

and even less opinions.

If our minds didn’t take up

the space meant for others.

If “1 in 5” was just a myth,

and we could actually walk alone at night.

If we didn’t have to cover up to stop the lingered stares.

And standing alone in a parking lot

didn’t require a preventative text about our whereabouts.

If “83 cents for every dollar” was a phrase

only heard in our nightmares.

And we didn’t have to hear the same warnings as our

brothers.

If eye contact didn’t make my heart race,

and people standing too close didn’t make my palms sweat.

I wonder how life would work if I wasn’t a woman.

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Madi Miller is a 10th grader living in Los Angeles. She is the middle child, with an older and younger brother. In her free time she likes to dance, bake and write.