WEBVTT

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So when I was--

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I don't know.

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Maybe because it's New England.

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There aren't that many
Black folks in New England--

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I would get this a lot.

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People used to say, they
still occasionally do

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say I look like our
former First Lady.

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Guess which one?

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[LAUGHTER]

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I'm glad I put the
date in this poem.

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I'm being told I
look like FLOTUS.

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New Year's Eve party, 2014.

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Deep in my biceps

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I know it's a compliment,

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Just as I know this is an "all
Black people look alike" moment.

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[LAUGHTER]

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So I used the minimal amount
of muscles to crack a smile.

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All night, he catches sight
of me or someone like me

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Standing next to the
deconstructed cannoli

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And empty bottles of Prosecco.

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And in that moment, I understand
how little right any of us

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have to be whoever we are.

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That constant tension
of making our way

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in this world on
hope and change.

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"You're working your muscles
to the point of failure,"

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Michelle Obama once said
about her workout regimen,

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But she knows we wear our
history in our darkness,

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in our patience.

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A compliment is a
compliment, this I know.

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Just as the clock will always
strike midnight and history

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repeats.

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This is how I can wake
up the next morning

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and love the world again.

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