When my dad said 'It's my way or the highway',
'Sit down and shut up'
'Children should be seen and not heard.'
When my teachers said
the correct answer is X
and I wanted to discuss why.
And on and on until,
I learnt to censor myself.
And now, deeply, from deep down, like a rising from the earth,
I'm called to raise my voice
to join those who have been singing a chorus
of injustice, of repression, of invalidation.
Now, the Catalan defence of the right to self determination
has triggered an avalanche in my personal history.
For all those times I held my tongue, I bit my tongue,
choked back words, clenched my teeth, fought back tears
because
I did not speak up.
I did not speak up.
Me too.
Now, the pieces of the past are falling together
gathering to form a solid foundation
under my feet, where
standing my ground, where
my voice rising
becomes the final piece of the picture.
It marks the end of my childhood,
now at age 46,
when I once said 'it's someone else's problem'
'they' will fix it.
It's a beginning.
Where I rise my voice to join the chorus
of all those before me, to speak out,
to speak up,
to speak.
And one voice does make a difference.
Because I know you can hear me.
I know you are listening.
And one day, I will join other pieces
of the puzzle of your life
and I will be there as one of many
who come before us,
as you too rise and speak.
Speak for your heart
your justice,
for your need, your right,
to be heard.
It's a beginning.