'I see all the armour you wear': Watch Britta B inspire with her poem of empowerment for young women
'I see all the jewels and gems of wisdom you share. It's okay to shine'
"A word that comes to mind for this piece is 'empowerment,'" Kingston-born and Toronto based spoken word poet, teaching artist, mentor and emcee Britta Badour says of her poem Dear Young Woman. "As a poet, I really want to serve as an encouraging voice through my work — and I want this poem to be a reminder that whatever you're going through, as a woman you have the choice to make for yourself on how gentle and kind you are with yourself."
"I may be putting this out there as a message for people other than me, but it's also a reminder to myself to treat myself kindly and to be good to myself."
Watch Britta B perform Dear Young Woman
As the world around us grows more and more uncertain, eight young poets speak their truth in the third season of the CBC Arts series Poetic License. Read the full poem below, check back next week for our next featured poet or watch all 8 performances now.
I hope you find you
I hope you find love
I see all the armour you wear
I see all the jewels and gems of wisdom you share
It's okay to shine, ma
It's okay to shine
It's okay to have pride, ma
You don't have to live a lie
Don't let the violence fool you into silence
convincing you that you're not worthy of space and time
You might not know it yet
but you got
a multi-dimensional set of eyes
looking out for you
Someday
you'll be part of that legacy
and become a guiding light too
Trust that what is meant for you
is relying on you to show up
Show up.
You can lose your religion
but you will never lose your spirit
Each of your breaths
have minds and LIVES of their own
I doubt we'll ever know the full impact of our presence
but do you notice
that even at your lowest
your aura orbits this
quantum measure of hopefulness?
The more inner kindness
the less the focus is of brokenness
Young Woman I wish you enough
I wish you enough time for all of your skills and talents
I wish you more
I wish you more revelations than disrespects and regrets
and I beg you to believe in yourself
more than your parents ever did
Carry out your curiosities
in spite of the corruptions you experience
You let yourself free
when you let yourself forgive
So when you do (and I know you will)
I hope you find you
I hope you find love again