~MICHAEL BLUMENTHAL~

AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A FACE

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        in memoriam, Lucy Grealy, 1963-2002


You saw your face in mirrors and you cried
to think what fate had wrought with those like you.
The more you faced your face you had to try

to change the fate that others had applied
to dreams of beauty that they thought were true.
You saw your face in mirrors and you cried

big tears of nightly pain and wounded pride
that neither friend nor surgeon could subdue.
The more you faced your face you wondered why

the less than beautiful are forced to hide,
the shade they’re most familiar with: the blue.
You saw your face in mirrors and you cried

for all whose in and out is a divide
between what’s mere appearance and what’s true.
The more you faced your face you plied

the trade of those who suffer but can’t hide
from fates too dark for those as sweet as you.
You saw your face in mirrors and you cried.
You couldn’t face your face again, and died.

© by Michael Blumenthal