November Poetry Challenge: 8/30: Beautiful People

I've been doing a poetry challenge this month: 30 poems in 30 days. Some of these will be good, some of them will be bad, and most them will be somewhere in between. But the point here is not so much to write well, as to simply write. The challenge takes its inspiration from the folks over at NaNoWriMo (http://www.nanowrimo.org/).


Beautiful People

I grinned into
the mirror this morning,
wriggling as I pulled on hot
freshly washed jeans and a soft,
tightly fitted t-shirt.
Flip back the hair, and look again.
Yup! Two thumbs up.
You go, woman--looking good!
Healthy, happy, a strong body
ready to tackle the world.

Drove downtown at lunch time,
past billboards flashing
from one come-on to the next.
Do you live in the right place?
Are you smart enough,
pretty enough, do you eat
the most luscious, does your drink
make your life a perfect party?
We can fix that for you!
Just let us help!

Picked up a waiting room magazine
at the afternoon appointment.
Brad had shaved, and worked out
umpteen bazillion hours every day...
Angelina was afraid she'd lose him
because she wasn't spectacular enough.
This star wore a style better than that one.
That model shared her bikini secrets.
This other actress needed a personal trainer,
and only $12,000 worth of surgery. Beautiful!

Tonight I stared into the mirror
and ran my fingers through
the growing streaks of grey
in my flat limp hair.
I turned sideways and sucked it in...
then sighed. Up to a size 10.
My jaw line is sagging. Look at the jowls.
God, I've got a double chin!
How can I fix that?
My body is so falling to pieces.

And now, I could stay up late (ok, later)
pouring through the internet
for sure fire cures
(only three easy installments
of $49.95 a month!) ...But no.
I think, instead, I'll strip back
to my own comfortable skin
and take a shower to wash the world away.
And then I'm going to curl up in bed, and snuggle
between my two very hot men. Who love me. As is.

Angelina can go jump off a cliff.


Melissa McCollum
11/8/2010