I know I am ugly.
Sometimes people try to convince me that
I am not ugly.
They tell me that beauty is only skin deep,
But I am still ugly.
I see the way people stare when they cross me on the street,
I hear what they whisper to their friends and family,
I feel the daggers piercing my back when I turn away,
I taste the salty words that dance on my tongue when someone who is truly beautiful passes by me.
I have felt fear and anger and hate,
I have dissected my image in the mirror time and time again,
I have gotten the word ugly tattooed on my heart, permanently engraved into my very being.
So please do not try to convince me,
That I am not ugly.
Because at the end of the day,
I’ll still hate myself in every single way,