A Wonderful Poem

A friend emailed me this poem. While I’m not normally a poem person, this really struck me.

While it’s initially hard to read, please make sure you get to the bottom. I can’t duplicate its title as the first word Pretty is upside down and the next word is Ugly so the poem is called 

Pretty/Ugly. The poem is by Abdullah Shoaib.

In a way, to me, this poem represents the split in our country. People look at the same thing and see two different interpretations. So…here’s to recognizing that there is more than one way to view something if you look beyond the surface. 

Here’s the poem:

I’m very ugly

So don’t try to convince me that

I am a very beautiful person

Because at the end of the day

I hate myself in every single way

And I am not going to lie to myself by saying

There is beauty in me that matters

So rest assured I will remind myself

That I am a worthless, terrible person

And nothing you say will make me believe

I still deserve love

Because no matter what

I am not good enough to be loved 

And I am in no position to believe that

Beauty does exist within me

Because whenever I look in a mirror I always think

Am I as ugly as people say?

(Now start at the bottom and read up)