Day 11- PAD Challenge - Real Men Read Women

I have to admit I struggled a bit with today's WD 2014 April PAD Challenge prompt to write a statement poem. Most of my thoughts kept revolving around statements about pain, but each idea went nowhere. I finally realized my sprained wrist was driving my thoughts and decided to take a break. When I came back, my thoughts turned to the statement "Real men read women." A group of writers created a campaign built around this statement to raise awareness of women authors as well as to raise money for youth literacy. If you're interested in supporting women writers and supporting youth literacy, please visit Real Men Read Women.

Here's my statement poem...

Real Men Read Women

The first time a man said to me
“I don’t read books by women.”
I stared at him, speechless
He said it so casually
He had no comprehension of why his
Words were offensive
He sounded offended that
I thought he would read
A book written by a woman
I smiled, politely, quietly
Unwilling to create a scene
Inside I seethed
Sexist, male chauvinist, jerk
Those were the nicer of the words I thought
But I said nothing
I wish I’d had the following words handy
“Real men read women”
To put him in his place
Many thanks to the person
Who not only said them first
But shared them with the world
Making it clear that some of us
Find men reading manly
Find men reading women sexy
Find men who value women strong
My words are as valuable as any man’s
 “Real men read women”
T. L. Cooper is an author and poet whose work aims to empower and inspire through an exploration of the human condition. Her poems, short stories, articles, and essays have appeared online, in books, and in magazines. Her published books include a collection of short stories, Soaring Betrayal, her Silhouette Poetry Series, and a novel, All She Ever Wanted. She grew up on a farm in Tollesboro, Kentucky. She currently lives in Albany, Oregon with her husband and three cats.

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