Words by Rebecca, 18 VIC
I wrote this poem two years ago during my teenage years, before recently coming across it again and refining it. The piece explores my personal feelings towards the world and myself and how I struggled with finding my own identity in a world of stereotypes and prejudices as a 16 year old. Now 18, I’ve realised that life will be full of challenges and insecurities and that one can only find themselves if they accept themselves first. Reading this poem two years on made me realise that giving in to our thoughts and self-judgments will only bring us further down. To be happy is to be secure with oneself and to be secure is to be grateful with what we have. Thus, this poem voices the typical struggles that a teenage girl experiences, and therefore is a piece of writing that young women can relate to, knowing that there is hope and we do have the ability to move forward in life.
I hope this piece of poetry inspires more girls to take a stance against their insecurities as in this day and age many young women struggle to be truthful to themselves and show confidence. We must learn to break the stereotypes and the ideology that if we’re not “perfect” we’re not good enough – perfect is just an adjective and not a noun.
Girl stares, mirror, tells no lies.
Shattered glass, stolen pictures, lost desire.
Reflection’s next victim.
Bitter and icy, girl turns.
Pale like the shimmering moon.
Beautiful moon,
Ugly girl.
Piercing whispers, silent screams.
You’re better than this and you know it!
High achiever, she’ll chase her dreams.
Yet, girl puts herself down,
She thinks they deserve better…
Expectations meet mountains peak.
How real is reality?
Girl turns cold.
Brittle, bruised bones,
Broken, empty soul.
She could take fight, she could fly, she could soar through the skies.
But, when she falls over the edge,
She cries.
Lonely girl.
Ugly girl.
Stand up.
Untangle yourself,
Puppet Strings, cut them off!
Little girl grows now.
As strong as the sea.
She destroys her demons,
She destroys the darkness
She destroys her belief in paradise.
Stand, attack, strike down.
This girl will live.
A career, a family, a life.
She will triumph.
Girl stares, mirror, full of lies.
Shattered glass, sparkles.
Reflection, true beauty.
No longer, ugly, stupid, girl.
Illustration by Aileen, you can find more of her work on Instagram @aileenetc
