I was always told
I was a unicorn
Strange and beautiful
And so very rare
I was told
I had a horn
To pierce those who lied
And big eyes to stare
Through someone's soul
But this seems like something I've learned
I'm not sure
I'm too old too know
And too young to care
And too fearful to stare
I am rare
Because my parents aren't divorced
I am rare
Because I am more than a horse
They had me when my mom was 20
And my dad was 24
I guess when you have sex for the second time
Condoms are something you ignore
So I was born
My parents were poor
We lived in a trailer
And my horn
Was growing so quickly
Along with the rest of me
I grew fast
I was healthy
This was good
This was rare
It was rare that my dad stayed
It was not rare that my mom cried
It was rare that they tried
And somehow
Pulled it off
"The unicorn situation"
They would call it
Because it was so rare
To raise me
I was easy
As far as unicorns go
I was tame
I was slow
Especially in school
But unicorns shouldn't even go to school
I was special
I went to special classes
On how to be a unicorn
I needed glasses in grade three
But unicorns don't need glasses
To see
They see using glitter
And shiny things
And heart strings
But I needed glasses
For my special classes
I was asked to sit in a small room
While the children did math
I had to repeat the same times tables
But don't they know?
A unicorn can't do math
They sit in stables
Better yet they roam free
But I was special
So I suppose these "special needs" classes
Were for me
I needed glasses to see
And classes to be
And grades to raise
When all I wanted was grass to graze
I wanted to spend days
Making art
But I was taught
That this would not last
I was a unicorn
So I needed to be more
I was oddly sinful
For existing
Because unicorns
Don't exist
I was a just a kid
No no
I was unicorn
I need to stick to the metaphor
So you understand
I was a unicorn
I didn't have hands
So I could not hold any
I had a weapon on my head
It was hard to sleep in my bed
That was made for a human child
It was hard to smile
Because unicorns don't fucking smile
And they don't swear
They care
And give all they have
And are colorful
And kind
But I'm just white
No no
I must be a unicorn
My parents said so
They said I was unique
The kids at school did too
I must have been a unicorn
Too bad I wasn't a Pegasus
I could have flew
Away from the pain
Of being born
From two unmarried people
In a very religious town
Away from the classes I had to take
Because I couldn't do math
Or all the times I stayed after class
For work my classmates did in 20 minutes
Took me two hours
And the showers of tears
From years of being told I am special
"Special needs"
That I am unique
"Weird"
That I am rare
"Not enough"
I was a unicorn
At least... I wanted to be
But I could not be
Because no matter how amazing a unicorn may be,
No matter how rare it is,
I cannot be a unicorn
Because unicorns do not exist
