Before I met you,
before you touched me,
I was nothing.
I was never beautiful enough,
inside or out,
to haunt anyone's thoughts.

Then you smiled at me,
game me new identity.
You turned my world upside-down
and I found it more comfortable.
Your eyes wandered my face, my body;
my skin gained fresh radiance.

You whispered beauty in my ears
and I believed you.

When you left without a word,
without a single backwards glance,
I hid again in my inadequacy.
The day you left me,
you took my self-image with you.

I may be hurt and bruised, tired and broken,
but one day I will be
beautiful without you.