A Stain

There is a stain on my white uniform 

It may seem simple but it’s not

The stain explains how I couldn’t even afford to pay attention to buying stain remover

It will make people think I am sloppy

It will make people think I am poor

It will make people feel better about themselves 

All from a little stain on my white uniform shirt.

A white little stain on my uniform shirt will tell you how I don’t have stain remover 

And how I don’t really may attention to my laundry

And the wrinkles in it can tell you how I just shove my clothes in the closet

The way my shirt collar awkwardly curls tells you I don’t iron my clothes

All from a stain you can guess I do not know how to take care of myself

But a stain cannot tell you about how it is the least of my problems 

A stain cannot tell you how I cried on my floor

Or the way I procrastinated it

It cannot tell you that it was a hand me down And will continue to be

It cannot tell you about the snot and tears rubbed into the fabric when my friend died

It cannot tell you the way I stare at my ceiling and think

It cannot tell you how I didn’t know that Spain was in Europe until a year ago

It cannot tell you about the strained relationship I have with my family 

Or how I saw my mother beaten as a kid

It cannot tell you about how I stay up every night

It cannot tell you about the night terrors I fear in my sleep

It cannot tell you anything about me because it is just a stain