Images: Vassar College
A Publication of the ALANA Center
Beautiful
By Traci-Ann Wint ‘07
Reflection by Juliana Ma ‘09
a thing that made men stare when they shouldn’t have
gawking, squawking, shouting, stuttering
under-breath muttering things
obscene, trite and true
beauty in her hands was an awkward thing
held like a smelly child
with care and love and a tinge of disgust
a little less than close without being distanced
regard for its fragility overriding the need to breathe
admiration was a thing with which she was well acquainted
but to which she had never quite grown accustomed
now don’t get me wrong,
modesty definitely was not her forte
such humility requires a certain confidence she simply did not possess
see, life had taught her that beauty belonged only to a chosen few
and she, dismissive of all delusions of grandeur,
knew that by virtue of her being her she had missed the boat
Men were crazy and would spit game to a pigeon
a couple ‘psssst aye baby’s’ and ‘holla backs’
gains you zero points in the gorgeous game
but beauty is a funny, funny thing
and it’s acknowledgement is treasured most by those who doubt its
existence within/without themselves
so she would strut, boobs up cause she’s a feminist and her sexy is
her own
and she would swagger, short hair, cause she’s a feminist and her
strength can not be contained by silky, kinky, or curly
and she would sway, swingin’ hips, head high, sure stride, high heels,
just enough pep in her step to let you know she means business
and she did
she was strong, and wild and mostly bold
but, remember, beauty, simply by virtue of society’s complexity,
begets uncertainty
and her desire to be desired by those she desired not
was grounds for self-condemnation in her strong-woman mind
for she feared that the men who gawked and squawked would offend
or degrade or worse, touch
just as much as she feared they would stop.
The ALANA Center, 124 Raymond Ave Box 423, Poughkeepsie, NY 12604-0423