I must confess, okay

I lied.

I lied, okay.

about my personality

natural introvert

I was shamed into being “the quiet one.”

throwing a 12-year-old into a new world

would do that

I was shamed into quiet and shyness when

Certain words I said

were made incomprehensible

Though I spoke the same language

When my English was not American

and you could hear the African in me

Shamed into silence...