This thought might not be the most fully developed idea, but…. in reading this poem, I was instantly hit by the 3rd stanza. It begins with the end of a sentence which started in the second stanza, leaving us with “if you don’t come out and say it. / Everyone knows the default mode/ of a poem is ten fingers, ten toes.” Instantly, my mind went to this thought of passing. The grouping of these three lines connects to the idea of being able to live with a disability that isn’t instantly recognizable. My question, however, is more based on the title. Does this grouping, placed in a poem called “Nondisabled Demands,” represent those lines coming from a disabled person, saying that it’s hard to tell who really has a disability, or is it criticizing the demand placed forward by nondisabled that those with a disability need to strive to pass?
I connect this stanza as more of a criticism, especially considering the half line (13) “Here’s what we’ll do. We’ll rope you.”
