Behind The Smile

Look

Porcelain skin, tiny waist, small boobs, long legs, and perfectly straight hair in a tight bun. 

That was the definition of a ballerina I was unconsciously taught when I was younger. 

Even though I wasn't outright told

 "No, you can't do that, you don't look the part,"

 It wasn't like I was given many varieties. 

I wasn't given the reassurance that not all ballerinas looked "the part". 

Some darker skin, some had bigger waists, some didn't wear A cup bras or have long legs, some had my braids and my short legs. 

I wish I knew back then that some looked like me, that Doctors, Lawyers, and Billionaires looked like me. 

Not just criminals, thugs, and hoodlums.

 I wish I was told that I could look like me.