Faded Beauty, Wider Smiles

Her beauty faded away,
Is compensated with wider smiles,
Smiles that do not reach the eyes,
Smiles that only accentuate,
The harsh reality of absent beauty.

Hands held on the hips,
Her walk is jauntier
Than the younger ones,
Hoping to attract somebody.

They come and they see,
The walk they admire, the hips too,
Then they see the face
And turn away with disgust.

The smile becomes smaller and vanishes,
Lips tremble and the tears come,
They glimmer before being hurriedly wiped away.
She knows that lack of beauty would repel many,
Tears would repel all.

But the eyes, those damn eyes,
They show her desperation
And as she turns them skyward,
Her lips whisper a silent prayer,
'Dear God, I do not want to be hungry tonight,
Lust, I can handle, poverty I can,
The jeers of all the world is manageable,
But... hunger isn't'

She waits for a sign,
A sign of being heard,
A sign that all will be well,
But the clouded sky gives nothing away.

Down the street,
She hears drunken laughter,
And she sees the unsteady walk,
She senses wandering eyes that ask,
"Is pleasure on sale tonight?"

Her beauty faded away
Is compensated by wider smiles,
Smiles that do not reach the eyes,
Smiles that only accentuate,
The harsh reality of absent beauty…