I was pretty once

When I was sixteen or

Seventeen maybe

Or somewhere between:

 

My hair was curly

And came down to my hips

And my cheeks were pink

The same as my lips

I told myself then,

You are beautiful, see?

The reflection there,

That’s beautiful me

But I ignored it

Then, I couldn’t agree—

I just saw ugly

And acne-faced me

 

That there on my face

Was my father’s large nose

And above a ways

Bushy brows arose

I did my best though

Because I always knew

It would be too late

When it became true;

By the time I saw,

My reflection had changed

And the features in

The glass rearranged

 

And then it became

Ugly wrinkle-faced me

That stared glossy-eyed

Back so openly

I’d grown old as I

Waited, patiently lost,

For my own beauty

To come back across

And now I can see

With a clarity new

How pretty I was

When youthful like you

 

My skin was still taut

My smile still had a glow

I stood at five-six

And I never did know.