Obama Skirt Poem #5

(For Carla who agreed
that we vote on more
than just the issues on the platform )

You don't like --- you just like being miserable
But miserable won't hold your hand
Miserable won't warm your soul like Stevie Wonder's My Cherie Amour
Miserable won't walk you home at night
Miserable won't hold that extra grocery bag
Miserable won't laugh at your jokes
Miserable won't make you smile
like Aretha Franklin
when she sings Chain of Fools
Won't make you feel
oh so powerfully clear and direct
like Nina Simone
singing Love Me or Leave Me
Miserable is lonely
Miserable won't pull you to the dance floor
like Michael Jackson
singing "I'm the One You Need"
Mike was always lonely anyway

Miserable don't harmonize like Boyz II Men singing Please Don't Go
Don't put itself on repeat in your ipod
till your tears dry away
Miserable just leave you crying
Miserable won't recognize when you admit defeat
Miserable won't kiss you in the morning
Or hold you close at night

Miserable ain't funky
like Bill Withers
singing Use Me
or Ain't No Sunshine
There is no B side to its single

Most time,
Miserable ain't even poetic
like Nikki Giovanni
or Jessica Care Moore
spinning soft black tales
of love still unrequited

Miserable don't tell the world
how much it loves you
Don't introduce you to its family and friends

Miserable ain't picturesquely poignant
like the last scene in a love story gone wrong
This tragic story will not be coming to a theater near you
And though you play the leading role oh so well
There will be no Oscar
No Emmy for your daytime drama

You don't like --- you just like being miserable
But miserable won't hold your hand
Like Barry holds Michelle's
Won't thank you in his acceptance speech
for being both his rock
and his role model

I think black women
must have liked Barack
for other reasons,
none too consequential
to the under-educated eye
I think we must have liked
his standards
Liked the sparkle
in his eyes
-the way they lit up
when her was name was spoken
Liked the instantaneous
shift
from peaceful to protective
when talk of changing her "image"
came up

Knew that she was more
than an accessory
to his ascent

But rather
that he needed her like earth needs rain to sprout its seeds

Known that he would make a fine example
For our potential suitors.

And for us.

We were tired of being in love with Miserable.
And hoping to make
a brand new start.