The Simply Styled Woman

My love for writing sparked a flame in me when I was a child. I used to listen closely to the stylized songs my father would sing to my mom each morning. Each lyrical masterpiece conveyed such depth ... [+]

Image of Long Story Short Award - Fall 2020
Image of Poetry
I see you
A simply styled woman
In her elegant white hijab pinned
together by a silver safety pin

I see you
A simply styled woman
Dressed in her signature black abayas and
Open-toed, Naturalizer shoes with silver clasps on the ankles

Yes, a simply styled woman you are
Not too fond of trends, but more of timeless tones
Nothing too loud, so you cancel out the noise with
Your routinely back and forth between gold and diamond rings

Oh! How much of a simply styled woman you appear to be,
But I see more of you in the four closed walls of your bedroom.

I see you in the dresser dressed in decorative decor that
Mirrors you into the antiqued picture frames of your life.
I see you in the snapped moments of your marriage that
stand together at the isle of your dresser,
In picture-frames that a-ten-hut in there assigned
Positions for the last 30 years,
Never out of place,
Never out of sight,
They are always there to
see you

I see you in the way your aroma lingers into an
intoxicating cloud of Calvin Klein Euphoria perfume that
Is perfectly paired in jet black NYX eyeliner and a mauve Dior
Lipstick with a sheer shined stain.

I see you become you when
Your large light brown eyes glide the blackened beauty onto
The waterline of your hidden hazel specs so swiftly,
When your full lips smack the sheer shined stain of
Dior and captivate your face,
When your skin becomes softer than the cream-colored
Silk robe that lies neatly above the plush white slippers,
I see you become you then.

Oh, how a simply styled woman you may be but
Your undertones of class and culture are far more complex,
Casually complicated like a thorned flower
Carrying with you beauty and painful knowledge

Oh, you simply styled woman
Whose personality is stamped in the Islamic art placed above the
King-sized bed, dressed in Palestinian blankets of
Floral patterns and plush textures.
The same blankets gifted from your mother over 30 years ago that
Are stitched together with memories of before the war.

The simply styled woman you are,
Whose TV seems to be stuck on Aljazeera and
glitches time and time again to Turkish Dramas with Arabic
Subtitles running across the screen

Oh, you simply styled woman
What is it about your complicatedly captivating simplicity?
Is it the prayer mats perfectly placed in paired baskets with
Prayer clothes to the right side of your bed?
Or is it the Quran laid gently on the bedside table holding
Its spot by a notecard of poetry written by your lover?
Maybe it's the notebook filled with prayers of better tomorrows?

Oh, you simply styled woman
Each part of you stains itself in the seeped simplicity of
Your beauty that lingers into the lasting love of
Who you are

For you are a simply styled woman,
Yet complicatedly captivating
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