Revised Sestina: These words are just words

I do not like being so skinny
But that does not mean I wish to be fat
Even so I have always been content with my body
I do not fret over my image
Harsh words are just words
But this is not the case for some girls

Girls often tear down girls
Girls who are too skinny
Girls who like their image
Girls who like their body
Girls who are too fat
I hope they know words are just words

Sometimes I am the one who uses mean words
I may rebuke other girls
They may be too skinny
Too obsessed with their image
Too unkind to their body
Too unaware of their fat

I laugh when I'm called fat
These words are just words
I know that in comparison to other girls
I am far too skinny
I know this about my image
Me and my size 0 body

Some would love a curvy body
Those girls are not fat
Nor are they skinny
Perhaps it's time we just classify them as girls
Other classifications are just words
They blur a woman's body image

Why should we even care about image
Our body
Our fat
These words are just words
We are much more than just girls
So much more than just skinny

Be skinny and still love your image
Be fat and still embrace your body
These words are just words and we girls are just girls


I don't quite remember what we're supposed to write about after we edit our original sestinas. I guess I'll talk about why I wrote this sestina in the first place. To begin with, I tried not to write an obscure poem. My sestina is about body image (obviously), which I think is a subject we are all familiar with. Also, it's something that I identify with personally. Though I don't presently struggle with my appearance, it seriously irks me when people reprimand me for being too thin when that's not within my control. I also am disgusted by people who think that bashing people with smaller bodies is somehow supporting people with bigger bodies.