Beautifully Black

I took a look
At my reflection
In a fogged over mirror,
And saw blackness.
Not the peanut butter black
Nor the butternut black,
But the earth black.

A blackness that was mine,
Derived from the sun
Beating against my skin
As I played on my island.
A blackness that was mine,
Derived from my fore parents.

I, my friends,
Am as black as the earth,
The volcanic earth,
The rich earth
That nourishes plants
Which feed many a people.

But in my youth,
I was labeled ugly
By those whose skins
Were the colour
Of limestone.
Their words like
Whips against my smooth back
Till I broke
And exalted
That I was ugly.

Then one day,
When I was older,
After my skin
Reflected my self hate
Or puberty,
My father
Looked me in the eye
And said,
"You know you're
Beautiful,"
With a twinkle
And love in his eyes.

From that point
I started to love myself,
From the fullness of my lips
To the blackness of my skin.
I love me
And I love being
Beautifully Black.