I Am Not a Warm Glass of Milk

It’s hard to always be yourself,
but still have to remind people
that not everyone likes the fluff
or the candy-coated answers
to all the questions of the world
I like my answers strong and terse
as in, I don’t want an endless path
of lines to read between
and a long line of strangers
waiting to pat my back
for something I barely did
or for someone to tell me
that my shirt looks good
when it’s clearly on backward
And because I like it like that
that’s also the way I act
and I just wanted to remind you that
I am not a warm glass of milk

Not the perfect before-bed drink
that your mother used to make you
or the room temperature complement
to the plate of also-warm cookies
or the keep your chin up type of guy
and also not the smiling all the time type
which doesn’t mean I am sad or angry
it just means I am not a clown
with a fixed emotion masking the pain below
I am not a warm and fuzzy teddy bear
wrapped in a chenille blanket under the tree
I am a straight shooter, a truth-teller
and never one to hide in a cave
for fear that fragile psyches are looking for me
because I’ve never been anything but myself
and I’m not sorry if it doesn’t work for you
because as I’ve said over and over again
I am not a warm glass of milk

I know a lot of people like everything to be
oh so soft and cuddly and collaborative
but sometimes you just have to admit
that Fred, from the office next door,
sucks at his job and has bad breath
and maybe if someone would tell him this
he might realize what he’s been doing wrong
but instead, the whole office tells Fred he is great
and then they talk behind his back about his breath
and they complain about his poor work output
and they singe him in their private Facebook groups
but never, ever to his face, or to their own
because most people don’t like the truth
especially if it’s not served next to
a warm glass of milk