This Female Body
11:32 AM Posted In My Poetry Edit This
At the age of two to eight, playing freely with my brother
Naked bodies, two in a tin tub taking baths, so much glee
Chest as flat as a runaway, ignorant but free
My unclothed body, running across fields, as light as the wind.
At nine, all I wanted was a bikini
As my sister had one
And I wanted to be pretty
As lovely as she.
But mama said, “No dear, you won’t look pretty cos’ you’re too skinny”.
At twelve puberty came
And with that my obsession with breasts
Putting on an off shoulder dress
Secretly trying on
My sister's lacy bras
Stuffing the hollow space with handkerchiefs
Smiling at my fake mounds
Pleased with my new profile.
Vanity took over, and I stood hours a day in front of the mirror
Studying my surfer board figure
Plucking and pulling at my nipples
Hoping they would grow
Overnight, to be proud round buns
So that I can be the flower
To draw bees over
To our front porch
As my sister had been
The rose.
Where are all the boys who waited patiently?
To take a glimpse at my sister
As I am now a teenager
Hormones asunder
Yet this strange body
Remained like a willow, and to the boys I was a nobody.
Then at 26, suddenly this shy bud
Which had taken a long hybernation
Started to bloom and I became a beauty queen.
I wore a crown on my head, an arrogant young woman
Who received too many male attention
Especially from bosses who were overly attentive.
After thirty,
You can no longer stuff like a boar
And expect to stay skinny.
As I pluck and tuck at overnight bulges,
My mind abuzz with questions, “What have I ate?”
In my mid thirtys,
I wanted so much to be
A mother
To nurture
A precious life in my womb
And watch it grow
Round and full
Glowing with love and contentment
As most expecting mothers do.
Now in my forties
I never cease to be amaze
As look at my own reflection
Curves that have become fuller
Like the paintings of a Hindu goddess
The mounds and the valleys
And yet I'm still discovering the hidden alleys
Of my female body
But with every new discovery
It brings a smile
Of acceptance and pleasure
At last I've become a woman.
Naked bodies, two in a tin tub taking baths, so much glee
Chest as flat as a runaway, ignorant but free
My unclothed body, running across fields, as light as the wind.
At nine, all I wanted was a bikini
As my sister had one
And I wanted to be pretty
As lovely as she.
But mama said, “No dear, you won’t look pretty cos’ you’re too skinny”.
At twelve puberty came
And with that my obsession with breasts
Putting on an off shoulder dress
Secretly trying on
My sister's lacy bras
Stuffing the hollow space with handkerchiefs
Smiling at my fake mounds
Pleased with my new profile.
Vanity took over, and I stood hours a day in front of the mirror
Studying my surfer board figure
Plucking and pulling at my nipples
Hoping they would grow
Overnight, to be proud round buns
So that I can be the flower
To draw bees over
To our front porch
As my sister had been
The rose.
Where are all the boys who waited patiently?
To take a glimpse at my sister
As I am now a teenager
Hormones asunder
Yet this strange body
Remained like a willow, and to the boys I was a nobody.
Then at 26, suddenly this shy bud
Which had taken a long hybernation
Started to bloom and I became a beauty queen.
I wore a crown on my head, an arrogant young woman
Who received too many male attention
Especially from bosses who were overly attentive.
After thirty,
You can no longer stuff like a boar
And expect to stay skinny.
As I pluck and tuck at overnight bulges,
My mind abuzz with questions, “What have I ate?”
In my mid thirtys,
I wanted so much to be
A mother
To nurture
A precious life in my womb
And watch it grow
Round and full
Glowing with love and contentment
As most expecting mothers do.
Now in my forties
I never cease to be amaze
As look at my own reflection
Curves that have become fuller
Like the paintings of a Hindu goddess
The mounds and the valleys
And yet I'm still discovering the hidden alleys
Of my female body
But with every new discovery
It brings a smile
Of acceptance and pleasure
At last I've become a woman.
