I was always considered the ‘smart’ one in my family – and that’s what I’ll always be. I would always remember how my mom and dad looked at me when I was about 4-5 years old – their eyes full of hope and love. And their looks now, full of disgust.
I’m the eldest child in our family – I have two younger siblings – one boy and one girl. When I was a toddler, my mom and dad would always compliment me. Something like “You’re so beautiful!” and “You’re the most talented girl I’ve seen!”. But, that all changed when I stepped unto 3rd grade.
I decided that I wanted to join our elementary marching band at that time. And my parents agreed. We would practice every Monday and Wednesday. And since practicing in that marching band made my skin always exposed to the sun – my once white and porcelain skin became a shade of brown. And since I was to busy on running for Top 1 in our class – I has less time to take care of my skin. That’s why I already had acne in an early age.
But instead of encouraging me or helping me to remove acne – they told me words that almost broke my heart. “You’re ugly! Get away from me!”
After that day, I focused on my studies rather than making myself beautiful. Because being smart is the only thing I can do for them to accept me.
Up to this point, they still treat me like that.
