Appar

We all wear permanent apparels
Apparels that change shades over time,
Like mine, it depends on how much light rays it comes into contact with
More often than not, I know not of which shade my permanent apparel is
An apparel that was of a very light shade when I was born,
Yet has changed with my growth and shows me how much influence the environment has on it
One that makes me as sensitive as I could ever be,
And depending on whose touch, can either make me feel creepy, or make me feel like heaven.
Sadly, I'm so defined by my apparel am i
Even contemporarily, I sometimes apparels are used to determine one's wit
My apparel in the eyes of some define how beautiful I am; one with which I find no problem
Because, beauty lies in the eyes of the beholder,
Sometimes aside all of that dust applied on this apparel.

Growing up, I realized how much control I actually have over this apparel;
So do I also realize how much power my apparel gives me.
This apparel sometimes succumbs to the pressures of life.
Over working this apparel, or I should say, subjecting this apparel to too many manufactures or products, only gets it distressed.
Once upon a time, the most visible part of my apparel got discoloured;
I was shunned, I was avoided, I was looked at with strange and the most suspicious eyes.
So disconsolate I felt, so deserted ,so neglected, so unwelcomed and so unloved.
Then I got to realize how conditional and maybe ephemeral the love they showed me was.
But, true friends stay regardless, and those who showed me love are those that would forever have my love.
I don't mean the others wouldn't have it; I guess love has different shades too.
I doubt their conscience would prick them at all, or maybe they'd never show the tinge of guilt; if there ever was any.
I somewhat understood because I hated anything from another apparel that would in any way contaminate or stain mine;
I know no one owes me a duty to be nice.
When I finally got my apparel in the right shade, their love returned, "effort-fully" and effortlessly.
When asked what I used to keep my apparel looking so good, I gave only one  answer.
Growing up, I thought it was fine for the female to have a lighter shade of the apparel,  and for the male to have a deeper shade.
So for the first time I saw the reverse, I was quite surprised;
Thus, it became a dream, and hopefully, I would get to live that dream.

Beautiful, varying shades rather have led to prejudice.
Even in a world with an apparel generally darker, the unspoken words dictate that the lighter shade takes prevalence over the deeper.
Filters give the desired shade when the real shade is undesired for a purpose.
How much love have you got for your permanent apparel; for your shade?

I have seen many lighten their shade because a preferred shade, most probably the lighter shade makes them more beautiful,
They seem to miss the point - beauty is very subjective.
But I, I have grown to love women with an apparel of a darker shade.
To have an apparel of a darker shade and still be beautiful?
Damn,  that's some striking beauty!

I hope we don't lose sight of the naturalness of our apparels.
My grandma once made me aware of the essence of beauty of my apparel, though she highlighted a particular shade

My apparel has and always will mean a lot to me.
I cannot even begin to imagine a world with people without permanent apparels.
Such an awful sight to behold that would be.
But maybe if we all had no apparels, of beauty varying shades, this world might have been a better place.
In the stead of learning the quintessence of these beautiful varying shades, comparison rules the day.

My apparel everyday teaches how much it is influenced by me, and the converse.
It has taught me to love and more importantly, that I owe myself the greatest duty of care to keep me safe.

I love my apparel, I love me.
And yeah, my apparel doesn't necessarily have to be the same as that of my mother's or father's.
So keenly I nurture, my permanent apparel.


By: Alokpa Amanda Dzifa