the guilt of being an average girl is that when i take my clothes off i suppress the urge to apologize for all my flaws and when i dare to express myself with confidence a cold aftertaste is left in my mouth that tells me to be ashamed when i breathe too hard hiking steps or sweat too much or don’t wear make-up or wear too much or struggle with my words i can see in split-screen our society’s expectation of “the girl” and beside it i sit wholly not even close to it and i can say FUCK OFF to it because it’s unrealistic for all but those few weird unicorns but when no one loves you in that way you start to say to yourself it’s because you are not that weirdly perfect unicorn every day now personally i’ve developed a taste for the flaws in humans-- it’s a gap tooth i’d love to sink my teeth into— and i’ll do my own work and i’m doing my own work to doubt my own beauty and worth less but the pressure still exists and will continue to unless we all work to stop perpetuating this lie or apparition that is the image of “the girl” like that
it’s already over before it began i told myself the whole drive up to calm down i told myself stories of all the things that could go wrong sure, in between i’d dream up all the ways in which it could go right but i always made sure to kill my own buzz before i got too high the truth? it wasn’t as good as i hoped but i chalked it up to nerves and pressure telling myself not to dream too big just the presence of him would be enough i told myself and then got swiftly lost within his eyes when we left i didn’t want to dare to dream any longer not if it could never happen so i asked for resolution while showing my cards in full “I’m totally into you” his blushing text reply was civil but frank the summary being “No, thanks" so another one down and i don’t want to dwell or obsess or feel this way … but i feel this way of course i feel this way i cancelled plans with friends “sick” sick in the heart crawled into bed laid my head tried not to think anymore the tears came today unexpected in the car my appetite left the numbed out pain came the suicidal thoughts tempting my name of course I don’t listen to them with any degree of seriousness i’m doing okay i knew i shouldn’t have hoped so much but it was just one of those things that seemed almost destined—that my brain was pinging off of some love nerve and then he just happened to be paying attention to me and reaching out and it seemed like maybe his brain was doing the same for me such a rare thing such a beautiful levity, like flying when it feels the sparks are charging in the air conspiring to bring two people who both feel that special electricity around each other it hurts most of all because i was reminded how spectacular life can be when you’re in love when someone looks at you and you have someone to look to and it’s not so lonely anymore inside your head and god, it aches within me and god, it pains me and scares me that i haven’t found that yet that it’s been so rare for me that maybe i’m just not the kind who can be loved in that way (with desire) all my life i’ve wondered, waiting who will find my life special who will get me and appreciate me is there not even one who can that way? i really try not to get too down about it because life must go on—if you’re not going to kill yourself, and i’m not going to kill myself, because when i’m not recently reminded of how wonderful life can feel when super-charged with love i can get high enough to sustain me when creating and re-creating love through art but goddamn, i say, and then i’ll end this (wretched poem that it is) goddamn… to be someone’s somebody to be looked at in that way... |
AboutHey! I'm Andie Bottrell, a multidisciplinary creative living in Springfield, MO. I share stories (autobiographical and fictional), poems, and other creative or personal musings here. Archives
February 2024
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