‘Too Much Is Just Enough’ by Oladosu Michael Emerald

‘Too Much Is Just Enough’

They say I’m too much—
too Black, too ADHD, too loud,
but dear, I’ve never been just one thing.

I’m the & between every identity
they try to split apart.
I’m the Venn diagram that refuses to collapse.

I don’t owe this world my neatness.
I’m not here to be a checkbox
or a diversity quota.

I’m the poem your ancestors prayed
you’d never write. I’m the hymn
that refuses to stay quiet in church.

I’m everything they tried to hide in the margins,
but guess what? I found the page,
and I wrote myself into the middle.

Photo of vibrant swirls of blue, red, and orange ink mixing in water against a dark background, creating an abstract and dynamic visual effect with flowing, cloud-like patterns.

About the author

Oladosu Michael Emerald is a writer, artist, and actor. He is the author of “Every Little Thing That Moves,” an Art editor at Surging Tide magazine and editor at MAAR Review. Instructor at The Arnheim Art Gallery, Young Artists Art Hub, and The Anasa Collection. He is the winner of the Off the Limit Art Contest (2024), Sprinng Poetry Contest (2024), Garden Party Collective Neurodivergent Poetry Contest (2025), and Sine Qua Non Inaugural Poetry Prize (2025). His works are published or forthcoming in Chestnut Review, FIYAH, Lolwe, Temz Review, and elsewhere. He is the Pioneer Fellow of the Muktar Aliyu Art Residency. Follow him on Twitter @garricologist and Instagram @garrycologist.

Photo by Lucas K on Unsplash.