Bloody nose, as often as people stub toes
I got a fat lip, every other week
Learn to breathe on the wrong end of a sleeping bag
Forced to read the bible, super glued to my hand
It’s not called abuse, it’s called sibling rivalry
And it’s always three against me, three against me
No one calls it hate, when it’s your brothers
It’s called tough love and accepted by the neighbors
It’s not called a hate crime, it’s just what my brothers did to pass the time
The beatings never stopped, then I realized
There was no place to run, nowhere to hide
I’ll never forget my thirteenth birthday
It was the first time I considered suicide
It’s not called abuse, it’s called sibling rivalry
And it’s always three against me, three against me
No one calls it hate when it’s your brothers
A closed door and a blind eye from my parents
It’s not called a hate crime, it’s just what my brothers did to kill
Then my mother left an envelope on the bed
With a one-way ticket and a note that said
“There’s no room in my house for a queer
And you’re never welcome back here”
A year later when my father had died
His obituary online said, “He was a loving husband and a father to three”
He tried to change my history
Did he think that he could just erase me
You can’t erase me
You can’t erase me