Reflections of Perfect Imperfection

image: Septian Simon via Unsplash.com

She peers into the gilded mirror
vintage, a family heirloom.
Eons ago mother came to her room 
and handed granny's wedding gift to her
instructions embedded in the polished silver
society's protocol for lissome girls' demeanor
they should be beautiful, prim and proper

Stacks of fairness creams and conditioners
for her dusky skin and frizzy hair
a corset, a pantyhose and a bra underwire
to shape the defiant youthful body going haywire
red lipstick and a thick dash of eyeliner
pretty dresses to charm the most eligible bachelor
was the legacy she received from concerned aunts and sisters

Between layers of expensive cosmetics
still flourished the girl's intelligence
stigma of thick-framed spectacles 
couldn't stunt her passion for books
crows feet and love handles thrived, 
diminishing her chances of getting hitched
yet she refused to fluff herself with silicon and botox

The dusty mirror is clogged with cobwebs 
of generations of frantic early morning visits 
the stench of stale notions still lingers
though she's discarded the baggage of social duress
she's retained the pale, cracked looking glass 
as a trophy for her perfect imperfection, 
because dusk is her constant companion.

#NaPoWriMo #ArtoonsInn #PoetryParlour #Day25 #Mirror