Too Very Possible to Understand
“Born the second of three sons, Brooke was a deep disappointment to his mother, who had wished for a daughter. Brooke brooded over his mother’s sense of loss and the constant remarks of strangers on his skin that was ‘clear as a girl’s.’ He was inclined to comment that his mother’s wish for him to be a girl had created a feminine aspect in his nature, invariably mentioned each time he professed, in letters to . . . female friends, to understand woman’s nature. At other times he took refuge in his maleness; “I am a Man. Your letter was almost impossible to understand” ’ (Letters 399) .
His skin was so astonishing that men
And women, everyone, was forced to say
How beautiful and clear it was. So when
They spoke of it, they thought it held the sway
Girlish gorgeousness and this was so
Completely obvious that they were forced
To mention it. It troubled him to know
That all accepted mother’s hex, endorsed
Her desperation for the lad to be
A lass. She wished so hard that it became
Reality against her wish and he
Felt that his face and form had made him lame.
He felt he had to find a way to ban
The fault. He had to shout out, “I am Man.”
~ Phillip Whidden