Home Remedies
It's after prayers and this lady saunters over to me
The new leader of our community
And asks
"What happened to your face?"
I give her a confused look
Is my make-up off a shade?
"You have a lot of pimples," she says, and gestures to her own face
As if the comparison might compel me to "fix" mine
I grit my teeth and reply with a nonchalant "Oh, I'm just stressed..."
While inside I burn with the light of a thousand candles and steam with the spicy smell of incense
Doesn't everyone have a mirror in their bathroom?
I hate looking in the mirror
I hate seeing my scars
The scars that will haunt my face until I am the one haunting
Mirrors do not flatter, nor do they compliment
Mirrors are cracked, demented illusions of reality
A virtual image of a psychotic surrealist's imagination
Bent and warped through over and again
Walking through each one, and morphing into something more hideous each time
The second lady was a family friend
She asked the same question
I'm just stressed
I'm just stressed
I'm just depressed
I'm just pressed
Pressure unleashed to be beautiful, to be perfect, to be flawless
As you list out 20 different home remedies, I wonder if you haven't thought that maybe I have tried them all
You tell me to drink water, because that will drain away every impurity
I stand in the rain, isn't that enough?
I have tried time and again, and again and timed how long it takes for just one to disappear from my face
With every chemical I lather on like lotion that sucks every drop of moisture from my face
My skin will peel until every layer has gone to reveal only my skull
And even then you will come and ask, "What happened to your face?"