(17, CA, USA) Carly - The Swan
The swan is a lovely sight. Her angelic feathers reflect sunbeams off the still water as she rests quietly in her modest pond. Her slim neck reaches up as she flits her pure, pearlescent wings, ruffling the water into little waves of aquamarine. She glides about, turning an enchanting eye to gaze upon her surroundings of simplicity. She is beautiful. Yet maybe, she longs for something more. Underneath those angelic wings, perhaps there lies a devil’s heart seeking to cry out for how she has been misunderstood time and time again. With that vacant gaze, she realizes she has been trapped in a pool of monotonous emptiness, confined to a world in which she is not regarded beyond the beauty of her appearance. No one looks to the swan and wonders who she dreams to be. Rather, they observe her angelic grace, unable to imagine such a creature to be able to hold so much as a thought behind those beautiful eyes. The swan, however, is discontent. Each pair of scrutinizing eyes singes her feathers, every unsettling comment feels demeaning rather than flattering. They do not see a brain behind her halo. They chain her to a box, shackling her to their biases of what beauty offers and withholds. She wallows in her discomfort, wondering if the world was right about her. Is she really nothing beyond her loveliness? Perhaps she should bow down to the world’s preconceptions, accept herself as nothing more than a mere swan. But in her heart, the true soul of her identity, she knows this is simply untrue. As she stretches her neck in a graceful arch, she realizes that her line of view goes beyond the pebbles of her pond. She sees a garden of possibility, blossoming flowers of her capability in the distance. Underneath those pure feathers lies her wisdom, her strength, and her love. The world may not see it at first glance, but she will prove time and time again that there is more to her. To be a swan does not mean she cannot be whomever she hopes to be. A swan is more than capable, and a true swan is not held captive by the world’s superficial expectations.
