Narrative Poem

Who She Saw

(Narrative Poem)

Underneath her DARK skin

Lived a weeping girl within

She hated herself in and out

She lived with every single doubt 

When she was young she was taught to love her skin

But as she got older that love grew real thin

Her skin wasn’t pretty and bright

When she got older someone told her “her skin was dark as sin in daylight”

She did not take that insult alright

After that society made her label her skin color as her plight 

Her hair was coarse and nappy

Looking at herself she could never be happy

Plump and big were her lips

Wide and thick were her hips

The mirror had said her skin was too black 

It showed her everything she lacked

Flawless hair, light skin, and being another race

She didn’t like her body or face

She longed for a different skin color just to get a little taste

Wish I could tell you that this girl was set free

But I have to tell you this girl was me

Because of what people in society say

That was the message I felt I conveyed

In front of my family I just smiled

They didn’t know that I thought black was foul

I scrubbed roughly to try to get it off

But wait….. it was permanent

Yes it was an affirmative

I would always stay

I wonder why God made me this way

Every time I tried it never would come off I just would sigh then cough.

Because of what people would say

My heart turned into ice and it wouldn’t melt away

They picked on me everyday

And I just wanted to run away

I never again had wanted to see the light of day

I was scared to tell, it hurt to have to repeat the thing they would say

The scars on my arm came from the racial storm

Day after day more of them would form

I would start the cutting process again and again

Each time jabbing deeper in my unwanted dark skin

I kept it all inside

Buried it all just tried to hide

It was too much for me to keep

So I just continued to weep

I was like a flower withered and dry

Needing someone to sprinkle water on me before I died

In my head I knew slavery had ended back then

But I had become a victim of slavery because of what I had called my ugly skin

I felt like life was a living hell

All because of being black wasn’t perceived to well

Because of being black I wanted to die

And yes I did try

After talking to some they told me being black wasn’t a condition

It was my great position

They help me find my place in this world

And they stop the horrible wind that had whirled

They told me I was beautiful and I tried believed it

Until this day I still struggle to receive it

But I will no longer let anyone tell me my black isn’t beautiful

Because for that person I will have a mouth full

Society and those bullies 

Will no longer pull me

I have grown to love my skin fully

I cried because of the societal lies

But never again because like Dr. Maya Angelou said “Still I Rise.”