At Seventeen

I learned the truth at 17 That love was meant for beauty queens And high school girls with clear skin smiles They married young and then retired The valentines I never knew The Friday night charades of youth Were spent on ones more beautiful At 17 I learned the truth And those of us with ravaged faces Lacking in the social graces Desperately remained at home Inventing lovers on the phone who said "Won't you come and dance with me?" Or whisper vague obscenities It isn't all it seems At 17 For those of us who knew the pain Of the valentines that never came Or those whose names were only called When choosing sides for basketball It was long ago and far away The world was young again today They gave away some dreams for free To ugly duckling girls Like me We all play the game And when we dare To cheat ourselves at solitaire Inventing lovers on the phone Repenting lives But not our own Who said "Won't you come and dance with me?" Or do something obscene to me It isn't all it seems At 17.