As Seen On The Bathroom Wall

When I look in the mirror
I see what I see
eyes that are a plain brown
not special, or unique
no flecks of gold or green shimmering
no light rings creating halos of what is
quite simply
normal
Surrounding them I see glasses
black frames
rectangular
Nothing fancy, since I don't need that
Without them, I wouldn't be able to see
those normal
albeit imperfect brown eyes
with no other color but brown inside.
And below those brown eyes
are freckles
a lot
scattered like soldiers upon the battleground
that is my face
They climbed the crest of my nose,
declared victory on my cheeks
and laid claim to the territory
as is the custom of a freckle...
or a hundred.
My forehead, plus one, can bear the brunt of winds
and crush cans
because I can
and you can't mistake it
for no other bears on it
the mark
of a woman
whose entire life was spent
being called "bird doo-doo head"
go south now
to my mouth
bottom lip too big
top lip too bowed
teeth inside
a little overbite
a little crooked, too
but always smiling or grimacing
depends on who are you
besides my mouth
lay dimples and lines
or a "kiss" and J.M Barrie might have called them
if I were living in his time
but I'm not
so they just age me
or so some people say
but then again those people
aren't perfect themselves, anyway
My shoulders are bony
my neck is too long
my breasts
WHAT BREASTS?
Let's move on
My tummy has seen better days
that's for sure
but after four children
I certainly can't complain
sure my waist is thicker
and there are pathways to Peru
and my navel could probably hide
a Prius
or four
but moving on to where I sit
my butt's gotten bigger
as have my hips
but then again I didn't have either
so can I really say
they've gotten bigger?
Or should it be said
that I've gotten them?
My thighs
oh my thighs
how they jiggle to and fro
and on my body
that's not as good a thing
just so you know
my feet
well
they need prayers
since as a mother of four
I haven't seen a pedicure in years
My body in the mirror
isn't a picture of perfection
It's not what some others brag that theirs is
they can laugh and point all they want
It's not a monument to the glory that is flawless beauty
but rather
a testament to the wonders of nature
and the fact
that
quite frankly
I'm proud to be me

(copied from my old myspace blog 6-25-08)