Fat!

They called her fat,

But she wasn’t that.

She had the gene of an athlete

And her bones carried a little more meat.

She found delight in eating her meal.

She loved the way a full stomach made her feel.

Compared to the other children, she was more plump,

But that’s no reason for one to jump

To such a conclusion.

The term “fat” was an exaggerated delusion.

The other children were more lean,

But this was no excuse to make them mean,

By calling this dear child such a name.

Taunting others is not a game.

When the kids went out to play,

They told her to stay away.

They didn’t want to bear her touch,

Lest they begin to eat much.

The thought that eating could be contagious

Is ridiculous and outrageous.

This was their way to ostracize

This dear child of another size.

Where did they learn to be so cruel?

This is no lesson taught in school!

There was no cause for such ridicule.

It made her positive attributes seem so miniscule.

So when she thought of herself, she thought only that

She was fat.

As she grew older, nothing changed.

She found society most deranged

And quick to express its hate

For those who carry a little more weight.

Those who seem to have more mass

Are treated as the lower class.

Her self-esteem and her self-worth

Became buried beneath her thick girth.

Thoughts of fatness plagued her through the years.

It was the source of her depression and the root of her fears.

She believed she didn’t fit.

Her most enjoyable activities, she soon quit.

She could not see in the mirror a reflection of who she was

And soon became the reflection of what was said

As fatness chained her to her bed.

Now consumed, is her destiny lost

By vicious words so easily tossed?

And just to think it all began

With a dear child too young to understand

That when she was called fat,

She wasn’t that.