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Rita was a petite and a vivacious young lady whom a layman would have described as pure ravishing beauty. The captivating smile she's got would have made her the showstopper in any exhibition of God's perfect creation, not to speak of her gleaming mono lid eyes. Everything about her was mesmerizing.
Here in Wudanda where Rita and her parents lived, amongst her people, she was not in any way close to being classified ' beautiful '. Amongst her peers, she was accustomed to being called ugly.
This persisted right from where Rita and her parents relocated from Aketajt down to Noibou where they currently reside.
Rita had spent almost her entire life staring at her reflection on the water surface, with one question in mind "why am I called ugly?". She spent every second of every hour trying to figure out what her flaws were, but she did not get any clear answer to her questions.
Over time, Rita got worried and she decided to share her thoughts with her Mother.
Rita: "Mum something has been bothering me and if you don't mind I will like to talk to you about it"
Mum: " What has been bothering you, Rita, please let me know?"
Rita: " Mum why am I called ugly amidst my folks even when you always say I'm beautiful?"
Mum: "Hmm " , she sighed softly, gazing up at Rita
" You see, my daughter there is a perspective of beauty amongst our people which is different from those of other races of which you may find amusing. Here in our country, a beautiful lady is one who is fat, plump and clumsy and that you are not"
"Beauty is quantified based on the robustness of a lady", her mum added.
Rita saw how true what her mum pointed out was. It was obvious because, her mum was plump like most of the women in the village, but what baffled her the most was why she wasn't fat too?
Her mum continued
"When petite girls like you come of age, the mothers get worried of getting suitors who would come for their daughters and as such those mothers could so desperate to the extent of sending their daughters to a place called fat farm. A fat farm is a place where girls are sent to be force-fed to fatten them up and refusal to eat as instructed may attract strokes of the cane"
Rita gazed at her mum and asked in curiosity
Rita: " Mum would I be taken to the fat farms when I come of age?"
Mum: "There is nothing to worry about my dear"
Her mum gave her an assuring smile.
" You should always put this in mind, no one has the right to hurt you by referring to you as ugly because you're a pure ravishing beauty"
She gave Rita a few more words of encouragement and they retired for the day.
Rita laid on her bed while the thought of her being taken to the fat farms when she comes of age ran through her mind, but remembering her mum's assuring words gave her hope. Thenceforth she became confident in herself and cared less about the beauty standards of her people.
What's your perspective of beauty?
