Twerk Lessons

from NOBODY'S DAUGHTER by kiki nicole

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lyrics

Twerk Lessons

i.

& you still can’t isolate them hips yet // don’t know enough about having rhythm in your soul the way it leaks out of your hands // your fingers can fold hair over & under// turn summer box braids into a family quilt // you can document the diaspora but not dance it // you keep trying anyway //

these are both things that will never leave your bedroom // what i mean is // this is what makes us girls // there is this shame that fits so easily on greased scalps // there is this frightened thing that runs down plaits // & we have the nerve to call it poetry

ii.

momma’s playin’ erykah again // the whole apartment smells of vanilla candles & cocoa butter // jill scott waits in the tub for your momma to join her // she saves a space in the bed like some kind of father figure // in the morning // they put on matching hoop earrings // the whole apartment feels like warm // the kind of love that comes from a thousand lip gloss stained forehead kisses // the kind of love like collard greens on the stove // we all take our shoes off & put on the satin bonnets //

what is it about being black & woman that makes you feel so tired all the time // it is only 6 pm //
there is still so much living left to do

iii.

girlhood comin’ towards you // softly smelling of shea
ashe // ashe // girlhood has to put on lotion every morning // girlhood lighting candles for a bath // or for a dinner // saying “everywhere you step is a place to be worshipped” // girlhood catches the spirit anywhere just to remind folks she’s still alive // that she still deserves to be alive // girlhood reading books on the stoop about different kinds of girlhoods // the kind without the double dutch & the liquor store on the corner // girlhood lookin’ like shower caps to the pool
girlhood’s favorite hand game went “shame shame shame” // girlhood hurting but hiding the scars in her cornrows // girlhood does not know how to part her hair that well / /she is afraid everyone else can see the wounds //

what is it about being black & woman that makes you feel so afraid all the time