Label Poem by David Oladipupo Olorunshola

The Label
Define who you are
And do not let others
Define who you are
For their definition
Is only a perception
A perception of who
They think you are.
It may be correct
It may not be correct
You don’t have to accept it

But, let me tell you
Perceptions are difficult
To change once
They are made.
And when it is the
Wrong one that is made
It sticks out,
Like a sour thumb
It is not like you take
An eraser and clean it off.

When you are marked
Or become a victim
Of wrong perception.
Which leads to the
Way people will judge
And relate with you.
You will have to
Work extra to correct
This wrong perception.
Otherwise, it sticks


It is even worst
When that perception
Is from someone
People hold in high esteem
It cannot be wrong
It sticks
You will have to
Break new grounds
To break free,
From it

If it is a wrong perception
You must know
How to handle it
And how to deal
With it.
Otherwise, you end
Up bitter, Frustrated
At the label
And you wondered,
If that is you