MY SISTER'S VEIL
My Sister's Veil, takes you on a journey of piercing, no excuses, gut-wrenching survival, in the lives of three young African American women. Which character's struggle will you identify with; self-hatred, self-destruction, or self-medication? Find out which and how they navigate through each. Below is the prologue to "My Sister's Veil." It is written in the voices of the three main characters. Who are you?
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MY SISTER'S VEIL: (THE POEM)
Toni's Veil:A beautiful face is never enough
to guarantee love, success, and trust.
Torn and conflicted by what they see and say
Maybe they're right. It's better their way.
They always win, so of course
we would choose,
to perpetrate a look that will never lose.
I'll just take it to the twelfth degree
so it appears self-righteously
to be me.
So bury the mirror and who you really see
and bury the hatred of who you really be.
Then it's easy to forget the grief
and promise yourself you can become
a respectable Thief.
​Terri's Veil: Restless and young
with nothing to lose
Thrown into your world
unblemished unbruised.
Ready to grow and to trust and to learn,
but guns fill your hands before you discern
the value of life, community and respect.
A simple way to mask your intellect.
Apprentice of self-destruction
a King with no crown
frustrated and confused
by the systematic run-around
Yet a gnarly lesson awaits to prove
it's by your own hand
you win or you lose.
​Tina's Veil: Abandoned and Afraid
Ashamed and unloved
I hid my pain as innocent as a dove.
But the Lord answers prayers
so invisible I'll be.
'Cause my black and nappy, embarrasses thee.
If only but, for a genuine veil
I'd lose myself in self-medicated Hell.
But no need to worry, no need to fret.
​Their yaki hair and blue contacts are easy to get
So spare not a dime for value and worth.
Designer labels and gold to our pride gives birth.
So strut on high and lively and proud
as you die slowly with a legacy
broken and LOUD!
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