You ARE beautiful

There is a five letter word we all try to reach

Because it is what is expected of us to deem

A young girl of 10 is told that she is beautiful

But even if you scream it to her a thousand times

“YOU ARE BEAUTIFUL”

“You ARE beautiful”

“YOU are beautiful”

“You are BEAUTIFUL!”

She will not believe because society tells her not to

She will roll her eyes because the boy she likes

Says that she is not his type

 

We grow to be the type that people would want to see

The type that they look at but never can really touch

But we mistake their aweing eyes as hands

They are not hands; they are just looking at us

They are not reaching for anything but just looking

The façade we create not the heart we have

But we mistake their awe as love

 

What do I have to look like to make you see?

How am I supposed to dress to make you see?

Why am I feeling this awkward?

Why do I feel if I do not meet your standards of pretty

I am not worthy of that precious, glossy label

That is printed in sugar coated words

That say you don’t have to reach certain standards

 

Then the next page says how to lose 10 pounds in one week

We are taught to despise ourselves

We confuse magazines as tips written in gold

We confuse the faces we see as the only ones we should have

They scream to be you because you are beautiful

But that is not really what is being told

They say the only way to reach the level of gorgeousness

Is to have a specific waistline, color of hair

And even the clothes we wear

 

They don’t care if you can recite every element in order

They don’t care if you can play a beautiful concerto

They only care for the name of your dress

 

But I will tell you this

You do not need their eyes for approval

You do not need to put effort to what they will criticize

Because the only thing wrong is their eyes

Not you or your style or your hair or your mouth

Because the only ugly thing in this world is their judgment

They scream for you to be yourself

But then you walk with their eyes of resentment

 

Fuck you.

So put effort because you know you are pretty

Smile with lips covered with whatever color you want

Walk in the clothes that you know you like

Do not walk in their eyes because they are not mirrors

They are not going to reflect your beauty

So don’t catch up to their levels

Because they are just staying the same place