To dress in pink

· by · in free verse, poetry. ·

I dress myself in ways
of gays, to separate perhaps, or
maybe as a checkered bee
to be unfit for fits of fists.

“I don’t like football”, said
not in contempt, but since
I never felt like one of them,
the guys so much like bullies

from my childhood past,
“What’s wrong with pink?”
you raise an eye-brow, as
I dress in colors for unfits

Football © Mario Zanini

Football © Mario Zanini

Magaly inspires us with the poem: “The three bees” by Suzy Kasem. I identified myself with the bee that does not fit in… maybe it was a choice or not, but I have never felt at home among the guys…
—
August 13, 2016

36 responses to “To dress in pink”

  2. It sounds more like you dress yourself in ways of you. Pink on men doesn’t connotate ‘gay” although our society likes to fling that word. I don’t know when pink became appropriate only for females and earth tones/blue for men. I worked with many mny men who wore pink dress shirts and pink power ties, pink polo shirts, etc. They didn’t care for sports like football, rugby, etc. but were into skiing, swimming, tennis….chess, reading, spelling… I imagine you were bullied quite a bit because of your intelligence and maybe the way you dressed. It is sad that we still have all these stereotypes in this day. Good poem and it quietly, pinkly digs deep.

  3. I admire a man who will wear pink really. To me this is a man who is secure in who he is. I hope the time comes when we don’t label people by the clothes they wear. Smiles.

  4. “To dress sin-pink” … That should be a crayon color.

    I also see “purr hap(py) soar.”

    This is very clever: “maybe as a checkered bee to be unfit for fits of fists” … dressing/acting like everything’s black and white (or black and red), when it’s obviously not.

    “I don’t like football”, said” … The “s/aid” coupled with “foot/ball” made me think of how I told my husband the other day that I was mentally kicking him in the balls.

  6. I think you are hiding the meat (so to speak) of the poem in this line: “not in contempt, but since” … “not in con-tempt, but sins.” This asks us to contemplate the difference between tempting someone as a con (on purpose) and “accidentally” leading someone to sin with you.

  9. Social labels and expectations have left a lot of us feeling like we don’t fit. For you it was pink, for me it was dresses–I couldn’t stand them. I wanted to climb trees and well, dresses don’t work all that great in that situation. While growing up, other kids (and some grown-ups) would call me mary-macho (male-mary or she-he). I didn’t care. It’s much more fun to be the bee we are inside than to playing at being what others say we should bee.

  10. Am liking this one, Bjorn, I can relate. My ex-DIL gave me. ‘Watermelon’ colored golf shirt. I don’t were it much as it doesn’t have a pocket. The only time I ever go beat up in school was by a large football player.
    ..

  11. Oh I agree, there is absolutely nothing wrong with a guy who loves to sport a pink shirt 🙂 rather I think its quite admirable that the person is comfortable and still feels masculine. Beautifully executed.

  13. I think the bee is the best way to be – we can set our own path and find what fits us..i suspect many a wordsmith never fit in.. i chose blue! 😉

  14. An interesting take on the prompt, Bjorn! My husband has pink shirts and t-shirts, all 6 foot five or beard and shaven head! And he’s a scaffolder!

  15. Like Sherry, I never fell for the jocks. I like men who – as I read somewhere once – don’t think their balls will drop off if they peel the potatoes …or wear pink shirts.

  17. I really liked this one. I smiled big for all the folks in my life who didn’t fit neatly into gender expectations, including my comic book reading, sci-fi loving, muddy-shoed self.

  19. It is sad we define and assign colors like this. I think everyone should wear whichever color they like. I remember being reprimanded at the doctor’s office, when taking my son for a check up, that I was wearing all black. The doctor further went to assume I must be miserable and sad, and if it was not the case, why am I wearing all black. Black is for depression, and suicidal thoughts, and despair, bla bla. I pointed out that her assistant is also dressed in all black, to which she replied “But he is a different thing!”.
    It boils down to wearing certain colors to avoid certain situations, much like in your poem.

  21. We think that dress tells us so much about a person, and sometimes it does, but many times it does not. Bring on the pink! And the purple! And every other color of the rainbow!

  29. I think you’ve articulated here, a very common – though quietly held – male perspective. I know many heterosexual men who do not consider themselves to be “one-of-the-boys” – nor would they want to be. Some interesting word “pops” in this, that really lend a bit of “snap and crackle”.to a seldom-raised point.

  30. I was a great disappointment as a baby for they were expecting a girl. There are some early pictures where clearly the clothes they bought in advance were not wasted. My favorite shirt is pink. We are not meant to be strictly defined…except perhaps by those that feel insecure.

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