Beyond Beautiful

She was pretty,
she didnt know it yet.
She was innocent,
unexposed to the world and its ugliness.
But that was a very long time ago.
She has been through much more than
she knew she could handle.
The protective walls around her gave up and
caved in.
She has walked through flames.
They singed away the skin from
her back.
They forced their way inside her and scalded
her ambition.
But time heals burns.
Her skin grew back, and it is
thicker.
She became
stronger,
enlightened.
She is no longer pretty, she is
beautiful.