I forgot how to smile,

When all my rights were torn.

I forgot how to smile,

When my spirit was worn.

I forgot how to smile when my faith disintegrated into dust that couldn't quench my thirst.

When my sunken cheeks no longer resembled the beauty I once owned-

Or the beauty that kept my optimism in its right palm, and in the other the deepest recesses of my heart that I would never give to him...

My fingers that once painted gorgeous paintings press against my face, to somehow shelter me from reality.

I once dreamed of fame, now I desperately whisper prayers of survival,

And on top of that-

I forgot how to smile.