The Knack.

THE KNACK

I love myself, I must admit;

I'm happy inside my head,

And I really hate the awful thought

That, one day, I'll be dead!

I didn't always love myself.

I remember, as a teen,

I felt one was no good at all

If one wasn't a Beauty Queen.

And I was plumpish, rather short,

Bespectacled to boot,

And every other girl at school

Seemed so petite and cute.

Not that 'cute' was a word we used

Way back in '49,

Never mind, I knew that I

Wouldn't get a Valentine.

One evening, on a well-lit bus,

When all was dark outside,

I studied my reflection,

And very nearly cried.

'I'm stuck with it' I muttered;

'It'll always be the same!'

My face would always be that way!

There was nobody to blame.

And then a thought occurred to me;

This need not be the end.

I might not be a Beauty Queen

But I could still pretend!

I could pretend I liked myself,

And no-one else would know

That my thrown-together features

Had brought me down so low.

I'd smile at everyone I met

And they would be deceived;

I'd tell the world I liked myself

And I would be believed!

I stood up, then, to leave the bus

And I saw, across the aisle,

A lone boy sitting by himself

And I flashed him my first smile!

It took some time to learn the art,

The unselfconscious knack,

But life took on a different hue

The moment he smiled back!

And the most amazing thing of all

Is although I was pretending,

This little story from my life

Has a very happy ending.

Because, while fooling others,

I tricked my simple mind,

When I looked into the mirror

I saw that Love is blind.

The face, of course, remained the same,

That couldn't be denied,

But suddenly I found that I

Was on that person's side!

I loved her, and I loved the world,

More, minute upon minute,

And I could take the whole world on

And everybody in it!

It doesn't always work, of course,

Sometimes I face the truth,

That I am really rather plain

As I was in my youth.

But it doesn't matter anymore,

My trick has seen me through.

Kid yourself you love yourself

And you'll see what it can do.