Lover's Slavery Poem by McDonald Mbejere

You were mine once,
I could've dyed you any color,
Because that's the kind of grasp and power
That you have over those that love you the most,
Due to their trust and lust
You can simply snare all that care;
Wrap you up so hard
Your next relationship is sure to be in lacking strings,
Because if I left these knots would sting
And my web will only weaken with tears
And have you surrounded by peers but missing the obvious next word.
They spend hours trying to dissolve my maturity because you earned a ring,
You let their words sway you
And blend your habits to what they do,
Deny your individuality
And let your gender save you,
Through a market of flesh on nights out in the city
Print needles in the ground with your steps
And simply go around craving strangers to eye you;
I sit in the shame that you were mine once,
But I guess you needed this part of your life
A growing experience,
You can be someone's wife now;
I won't even take credit for who you are,
I'm not even sure I can see past your prior image,
The one I dyed black;
You're part of society,
Something I have no faith in,
Even with the obvious ways in,
Conformity would literarily make us something of kin;
I hope you'll accept who you are in this time and place
And only call me when you look in the mirror
Then decide you need time and space;
I'll be your friend,
And a slave to seeking your salvation,
I owe that much,
All because I owned you that much.