LGBTQ+: Year 10 Winner
Nasra wins for this thought provoking poem about gender stereotypes. Nasra said: The poem is about a girl who gets told by her teacher that she is confused for not liking the colour pink. It is loosely based on a time I was called out and picked on in front of my class by a teacher when I was in Reception. My mum was the supportive person who went to the school and got the teacher to apologise.
Confused
Today, I was told I was confused
I searched what the meaning of confused was
Bewildered, came the suggestion
I didn't know what that was supposed to mean though
So I looked at the synonyms
Muddled
It didn't seem to work in my brain though
I mean, I'm a human
Not a bunch of toys
All muddled up!
So what did they mean by calling me confused?
I looked at another synonym
Demented, according to Google
Apparently, an informal British definition is
Someone behaving irrationally
Due to anger, distress or excitement
I asked Mummy and Daddy and they asked me who said that
I replied to them
They told me not to use it
But we're British, I said
And that was when they told me
"Sweetie, not everything you hear will be correct or true"
So I asked whether I was confused
Their eyebrows went down, and crinkled
Into the middle of their faces
And their noses scrunched up
Eyes widening in what I later learnt was worry
They asked what happened
I told them the story
Miss told us to pick some paper to make some art
There was blue and pink
She said for the boys to pick blue and the girls to pick pink
So, the boys chose blue, and the girls chose pink
I didn't like pink though
I liked blue
So I picked
Blue!
But
Miss stopped me.
All the kids laughed
She did too
She called me confused
They did too
I told her I didn't like pink
She laughed again
They did too
She said:
"What sort of
Girl
Doesn't like
Pink?
You're confused
And when you grow up, you'll get it"
She laughed again
They did too
But I didn't find it funny
I wanted to cry
Mummy and Daddy pulled me onto the sofa
And hugged me
Daddy stood up and went to the phone
He called the school and told them
The story
"How could you tell a 6 year old that?"
Mummy stroked my hair and whispered in my ear
Telling me I was perfectly fine
And not confused.
