Poetry From The Heart

Beautiful

Pretty, Gorgeous, Lovely, and Beautiful are all words to mean one thing, to describe someone or something of good looks.
These words are spoken amongst family members, couples, and friends.
You're beautiful!
The words meant so much to me at one time, I took them to heart.
I loved how people would compliment me with these powerful words!
Something seemed to change one year; and people were more cruel.
It happened to me when I was 13, my ears no longer rejoiced at the word 'beautiful' after the incident.
How bitter and unfitting the word is for a situation that never should have occurred.
I was a target of cruelty.
The ones who were less likely to be dated, the overweight, the nerds, the quiet.
And I fit two of these categories, two of many horribly stereotyped categories.
I was innocently walking to lunch, alone with a plan to meet my friends there. I had a backpack slung across my already sore shoulders and a thick binder in my arms across my chest.
A boy I'd seen a few times in the halls walked up to me with a question: "What's your name?"
"Rosa," I replied, uneasily looking around the almost empty halls. My eyes noticed a few boys standing across the hall giggling amongst themselves.
I ignored them, focusing on the boy before me, "that's a pretty name," he said with a seemingly kind smile.
I smiled in return, "thanks." He moved to one side and pointed behind him, "You see my friend over there, in the red?" I nodded in acknowledgement. "He likes you," a blush rushed to my face, not knowing how to react.
The boy in red laughed, pointing at me and saying "What a dork! Look how red she is! See, I told you, man." Embarrassment flooded through me and anger coursed through my veins. I flipped my hair with a huff and walked away only to hear one statement being called after me. "Hey, Rosa, you're beautiful!" He said through a gawfing laugh.
Immediately afterward I knew I could never believe when someone called me beautiful.
This happens every day, another person a victim of bullying, of embarrassment. It happens to me, still. No person should feel as though they aren't truly beautiful because of the horrible taunting people in this world.
Maybe one day it will stop, maybe we will view ourselves as beautiful once more.

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I really don't have a note for this one, the message throughout it is pretty clear.
Have you ever encountered this, or been a victim yourself?

Please remember to vote, comment and share if you please.

Rosa Vazquez.