The Question

Am I good enough?
The question I’ve asked myself since before I could walk
Am I good enough?
Why aren’t I good enough?
What can I do to be good enough?
The questions turning, churning in my mind.
Not able to ask out loud, like my lips are tied to tight.

What can I do to be good enough?
Am I funny enough?
Do I need to tell stupid jokes just to be worthy of attention?
What did one magnet say to the other?
I find you very attractive!
Even questioning a chicken’s motive.
But does that make me funny enough?

Am I pretty enough?
Shopping at expensive stores, buying expensive things.
Falling subject to the lies.
This makes you thinner, that makes you look taller.
It even makes you rich and famous.


All lies, and yet I pull out my wallet.
The green faces of president’s past look disappointed.
Why aren’t I good enough?
Slathering products on my face and hair.
I look in the mirror, but it’s not me I see.
It’s the fake impersonation of the soul inside.
Trying to please only God knows who.


Am I smart enough?
Trying to impress
Do the homework. Take the test.
Bring a report card home
All A’s and one B+
Is that good enough? But no such luck
Because clearly that’s not good enough, I guess I didn’t try hard enough.


I’m tired of all the standards
A joke doesn’t define me, clothes and make-up don’t refine me.
A piece of paper with some letters don’t even come close to recognizing
All that I do, all that I try,
But why do I feel so empty inside.


The question dances on my tongue, just out of reach.
It wants to be released.
But it’s a part of me now, it makes me who I am.


But when my kid asks, “Am I good enough?”
I’ll say, no!
No you’re not good enough.
To be good enough means you just reach that bar, the bar set so high.
I will see the insecurity in the small questioning eyes.


NO! Good isn’t worthy of you, that four letter word cannot contain you.
It does not define you, refine you, or recognize you.
You will never be merely good enough.
Because to me you are perfect, because perfection is when you are you.


Butterfly: You are the best you. You will always be a second best version of anything else, so make sure you follow your heart, your dreams, and your own path. Don't follow where other people tell you to go because then you are going down their path, not yours. Trust that somewhere deep inside you know where you are going, and you can take yourself there. Enjoy your journey because, in the end, it will be your story to tell...no one else can compare.