For twelve years, I didn’t let anyone come close to me.
I never changed clothes in front of anyone.
No one had seen me naked.
And whenever people occasionally said,
“Margaret, you’re still such a beautiful woman…”
I would simply smile.
Those words no longer meant anything to me.
Until one evening.
That night, after taking a shower, I stood in front of the mirror. My hair was loose, and I had no makeup on.
I stared at myself for a long time.
My hands were no longer young.
My body had changed.
My skin wasn’t what it used to be.
But the longer I looked at myself, the stronger one thought became in my mind.
“Who said my life was over?”
I don’t know what came over me, but I opened my closet and pulled out a beautiful nude-colored lingerie set with tiny black dots that I hadn’t worn in years.
