Face Beauty Auto (a poem)

Face Beauty Auto

Autobiography

beauty, they say, is only skin deep

a decorated package wrapping up the soul and heart.

motorola makes beauty effortless

available at the touch of a button.

face beauty auto.

blending away the lines

smoothing out the blemishes

perfection erasing evidence of life lived,

covering the freckles that testify to sun-kissed summer.

even complexion, airbrushed ideal

denying the hard-earned lines grooved by

laughter and tears

and memories made

and battles waged

in the invisible depths.

hyper-reality,

youth regained

but only temporarily

on a hand-held device.

better to embrace visible pores

than to pour over elusive perfection.

better a face worn by life and love

than loving my face more than living.

round off the edges, smooth out the roughness

but never obstruct the evidence I wear

that declares I’ve lived full

in all the wonder and mess.

luminescence, not from concealing,

but evoked from being alive

for years enough

to gain wisdom

and experience

and to soften the edges

of my heart

and words

and critique.

my honest face

behind the screen

is more rugged

 less softened

more weathered.

that face

is my autobiography.