Mary Anne Dryden is a Dundee-born feminist poet with a passion for hillwalking and chess. Mary Anne, who was diagnosed with Asperger’s Syndrome, is of the opinion that Asperger’s is not a disability but a way of seeing the world from a unique and beneficial perspective. She hopes to one day to publish a novel and a book of poetry.
I Am My Voice
Regimes may throb and dreams may smoke
but my sisters’ thoughts they’ll not revoke.
Through rock that quivers, through concrete stream,
our reds and yellows will dazzle and teem.
My womanliness need not be feminine,
not that the feminine should be seen as weak.
Upon hard ground my body may recline,
but my spirit stands upright, unafraid to streak.
My contemporaries ride, independent their routes,
unashamed of their faith, proud of their roots.
Here I stand, a tangible woman,
distinct and unique, undeniably human.
Palpable our light, pregnant our dark.
Of Ophelia we dream, and of Joan of Arc.
We shall not be victims, we shall not be Persephone;
It is we in our control, the victors of our destiny.
Accomplished as stone, skilful as sand.
Royal my mind, unyielding I stand.
I’ve no need of puppets, virtuosos with strings.
My silence a silence that exquisitely sings.
My world of butterfly is also of moth.
There are many ingredients that make up my broth.
I control what my mirror might choose to reflect.
I have the right to its pureness, its utmost respect.
I am my voice, and I am my thought.
My values are values that cannot be bought.
Here I stand, undeniably human,
real, unbroken, triumphant, woman.
You can keep up with Mary Anne’s writing via her email address,
maryannedryden@gmail.com.