What is strength?
What is it that truly makes us strong?

Is the jock strong?
Do his muscles,
bulky weight,
towering height,
make him strong?

Is the intellectual strong?
Does his high IQ,
big words,
witty retorts,
make him strong?

Is the dreamer strong?
Does her creativity,
imagination,
brightness,
make her strong?

Is the anarchist strong?
Does his will to express full freedom,
to be himself, and only himself, in every way,
to live life as it should be lived,
make him strong?

Is the poet strong?
Do her fierce lyrics,
provocative thoughts,
inter- and intra-personal connections,
make her strong?

Is the slave strong?
Does his tolerance,
submissiveness,
will and ability to please,
make him strong?

Am I strong?
Does my pursuit for personal truth,
open-mindedness,
defiant, optimistic nature
make me strong?

I believe
we are all strong,
every one of us-
except for those
who refuse to be,
who hide cowardly behind
fake names, prosthetic faces.

So tell me this.
Are you strong?