My heart is pounding
Soon it will be my turn to speak.
I know what I want to say
But will my mouth let it out?

I choose my words carefully
Watch out for P’s and H’s.
Keep that real-time thesaurus open
You might be forced to swap a word out.

I feel my throat tighten
I do not even know why.
My mind and body play tug of war
As my vocal cords just seem to freeze.

Oh my God, that sounded so stupid
I knew exactly what I wanted to say.
But I could not get “that” word out
I feel robbed and belittled again today.

Good days and bad days
Why? -I don’t have a clue.
Some days it is almost unnoticeable
While on others, my defect takes center stage.