Mirror mirror on the wall ... Who is the fairest of them all?

Teri Ann Renee Paisley, Contributor

Alyssa flung the door open, threw her bags on the couch in one fluid movement as she slid to the ground. Her eyes were glassy and she sat for a long time on the worn linoleum floor as the unshed tears glistened in her troubled brown eyes.

Her mother entered the room with her hands covered with suds and stopped in dismay when she saw Alyssa's crumpled form on the ground.

"Alyssa, your uniform will get dirty. Take it off and give it to me to wash!" she ordered firmly as she gestured toward her, sending wisps of soapsuds across the room. Alexia paused and regarded her daughter's face for a moment then she sighed, "What happened this time Alyssa?"

Those words released a flood of tears. Alyssa tearfully recounted her latest tale which involved the girls in her class vicious daily verbal attacks.

Alexia rubbed her hands together gingerly to rid her hand of excess soap suds as she listened; her deep amber brown eyes were laced with a fine network of wrinkles that tightened when she frowned.

She cradled her daughter's face in her hands and gazed in her eyes solemnly as she spoke in a low voice, "Alyssa, those girls are not important. They tease you because it makes them feel powerful. You must take the power from them by not making them realise that their words hurt you."

"Mom, you don't understand anything. They are right. I am ugly. Why couldn't I have long hair and a smooth skin like yours?" she replied with a desperate note in her voice.

Mom drew out a chair and sat at the table, and she regarded her with a slight frown on her face.

"Is that what you really think about yourself, Alyssa?"

Alyssa did not answer and lowered her head so that all Alexia could see were her shiny tight braids. The question seemed to hang in the air accusingly as mother and daughter waited for an answer. After what seemed like an eternity, Alyssa finally mumbled, "No, Mom."

Alexia sighed heavily and regarded her daughter's downcast eyes. She reached out a hand to console her, then dropped it back at her sides. She raised her daughter's head and tried to find the words that would make her daughter find the strength to stand tall.

"In my day, getting an education was a privilege, not a right. My mother thought it was a waste of money to educate girls, so I had to fight to be sent to school. So I don't want to hear any foolishness about these jealous girls. Just do your work and ignore them," she asserted with a quick decisive gesture.

Understand the pain

Alyssa nodded half-heartedly, then collected her bag from the floor and went to her room. She knew her mother meant well, but there was no way she could understand the pain she felt every day at school.

Her mother had been trained as a nurse, but her skilful hands were now filled with soap suds as she was always washing something or the other in the house.

Everyone was happy with the arrangement, however, the safe, cozy life her mother lived couldn't prepare her to deal with the challenges Alyssa faced in the real world.

Alexia was so beautiful, too, with her long wavy brown hair that fell to her waist, and her flawless skin, which glowed. Alyssa's Dad always referred to her as his 'beauty'. Alyssa wished desperately that she was a 'beauty' too, instead she would probably be a 'beast' forever, and that is if she could ever find anyone to love her. She burrowed her head in her pillow and thought about the lonely years ahead, and sobbed miserably.

Alexia reached for the wall to steady herself as her thoughts tumbled chaotically through her mind. Alyssa was so much like her at that age that it was surreal to hear her say the very same words she had told her mother years ago. She had felt her mother didn't understand her problems. She knew how those types of girls behaved; their words could cut worse than a knife.

Alexia knew that ignoring the girls would not be easy for Alyssa because of an even greater problem. Alyssa had such low self-esteem that she was easy prey. Alexia smoothed back her hair and set her lips in a thin line. She remembered her own self-consciousness, when growing up, about her pimples, which at that time were generously sprinkled across her face. She also had such horrid teeth, she was sure she was going to be deformed forever.

She had such a hard time believing that anyone could love her that she had done something so horrific that she had never talked about it with anyone. She never wanted to revisit that terrible time in her life. She tightened her fingers convulsively and decided that the only way she could help her daughter was if she told her about her own struggles. Maybe then Alyssa would see that her mother did understand it wasn't easy to ignore the taunts of her classmates, and really listen.

She hesitantly stepped towards the door and paused as she unconsciously rubbed the slight indentation at her wrists. Although many years had passed, she could still feel them, a stark reminder that she was not immune to the constant teasing of others, and they were a symbol of her shame. She knew, though, that it was time to put aside her pride before it was too late for Alyssa.

"Alyssa, we need to talk, open the door."