Pretty?

No, you are not pretty. You are nowhere close to pretty.

You are out of your mind if you ever think you deserve the adjective “pretty.” You are nothing close to the word, honey.

“She’s not even pretty,” he said, she said, they all said. And they are right. Damn straight.

I am sorry. I am sorry you think you are pretty when you are really not. I’m sorry you had to put yourself so low because of the word “pretty.”

I am sorry because that word is such an understatement.

That word has been grappled over by women everywhere, competed and fought for like a crown of victory. But really,it is not.

Pretty is nowhere near your eyes that keep the entire universe inside, that hold all the stars that glitter at night. That erupt into a brand-new color when hazel and amber kiss.

Pretty is not what defines your smile. For if Helen’s face can launch a thousand ships to sea, your smile can and should bring them all to their knees, competing for a place beside you, as if you were royalty. Tell me, what is pretty compared to a smile of pure natural beauty?

Pretty is nowhere close to your heart—your heart that bursts like fireworks at night, that soars like an eagle in majestic flight, that when love swallows your heart it emits from your entire body, and you embrace the feeling and project it wholly. Your heart is big, and almost the whole world can fit inside it, giving enough amount of love for everyone to share.

Pretty is nothing compared to your cerebrum. And god, how amazing are the things you keep inside your head—your ideas, your works, your thoughts, and everything else that defies the most brilliant of the brilliant. Your empowered psyche overwhelms them completely.

Pretty is nothing compared to your beautiful soul, your saturated-evening-sky spirit, your poetic being.

Pretty is nothing compared to your resilience, your bravery, your wit, your skills.

You are so much more than a word that you are killing yourself for. But I am really sorry because, darling, you are not pretty.

Ingrid Angelica Custodio, 18, is a communication student at Holy Angel University, Pampanga.