The silence is scarring

My teenage self: "Mom, do you think I'm pretty?"

My mother: "..."

It didn't matter what she actually said, her extra long delay in responding said it all.

And so you have the root of my inability to accept compliments well and the core of my self-consciousness and self-doubt.

If I ever have a daughter, I will tell her everyday that she is the prettiest girl on earth, inside and out.