Best For:
advocates of LGBTQ-inclusive family structures, readers interested in modern critiques of traditionalism, and anyone seeking a poetic defense of diverse marital bonds.
The Vault:
- The-Sum: A metaphor for how different relationship equations can still result in a valid family unit.
- The-Bully: Representing the harmful nature of those who use tradition as a weapon of exclusion.
- Glass-Houses: A classic idiom repurposed to highlight the hypocrisy of those who judge diverse love while leading fractured lives.
- The-Aisle-The-Broom-The-Fasting: A list of diverse ceremonial symbols from different Christian, African-American, and Pagan cultures. These were used to validate all forms of spiritual and legal union.
- T-for-T: A specific cultural nod to the strength and validity of trans-for-trans relationships.
I wrote this poem as a direct response to the narrow definitions of family and marriage that are often used to marginalize the LGBTQ-community. It works as a challenge to the idea that traditional things are under attack. Instead it has suggested that the only thing being challenged is the monopoly on who gets to define love.
This is a call to recognizing the beauty in our differences and a firm reminder that our families and marriages do not need to look like yours to be sacred.
“Traditional”
Original poem by: Axton N. O. Mitchell
I keep seeing the terms family and marriage
mentioned everywhere…
Traditional things are seemingly, under attack.
You know the bully always…. tried to hide
and lie.
What is traditional for you, and traditional for me
do not have to equal the same sum.
If we could locate the beauty in our difference.
A wlw couple, a mlm pair too,
two close roommates,
a human and any number of pets,
any gendered parents
and however, many kids, adopted,
stepped up parent and all,
and yes, even t for t can be a family.
A marriage between two loving human beings consenting
to spend forever hand in hand,
no matter how many times
they mend their bond. This connection is just as strong, regardless
of their gender assigned at birth.
Let them walk the aisle to the altar,
or they will jump the broom or tie their hands in a fasting ritual.
If you can take on wife three,
and your mistress still pretends
not to see, keep your prying eyes off of me…
when speaking of traditional things.
People in glass houses shouldn’t throw
🖤What struck you most or left you uncertain?
feedback?
Comments, Questions, Concerns?
Poets-Note:
In “Traditional” I wanted to strip back the prying eyes of those who preach tradition while failing to uphold the very values they claim to protect. This piece is about reclaiming the altar, the broom, and the bond. I chose to include various types of pairings from roommates to t-for-t couples, because family is defined by the love behind the bond, not the relationship between those involved or their assigned sex at birth.
True tradition is the act of creating bonds and choosing to spend forever hand-in-hand. When we speak of family, we are speaking of consent, love, and the strength to stand tall in a world that tries to hide behind lies.
If your version of tradition is built on judging others, then your house is made of glass. I will continue to walk my truth, and I hope this poem gives others the courage to walk theirs, however they choose to define it.
TLDR:
- Redefining-Tradition: A sharp critique of hypocritical standards and a celebration of diverse family structures.
- Inclusive-Love: Explicitly validating wlw, mlm, roommates, and t-for-t couples as legitimate families.
- Hypocrisy-Exposed: Using metaphor to challenge prying eyes and judgmental traditionalists.
- Ceremonial-Unity: Honoring the various ways humans commit to each other through fasting rituals, jumping the broom, or walking the aisle.
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