I learned the thruth at seventeen
That love was meant for beauty queens
and high school girls with clear skinned smiles
who married young and then retired
The valentines I never knew
The Friday night charades of youth
were spent on one more beautiful
At seventeen 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 called to say - come dance with me
and murmured vague obscenities
It isn't all it seems at seventeen

A brown eyed girl in hand me downs
whose name I never could pronounce
said - Pity please the ones who serve
They only get what they deserve
The rich relationed hometown queen
marries into what she needs
with a guarantee of company
and haven for the elderly

Remember those who win the game
lose the love they sought to gain
in debentures of quality and dubious integrity
Their small-town eyes will gape at you
in dull surprise when payment due
exceeds accounts received at seventeen

To those of us who knew the pain
of valentines that never came
and those whose names were never called
when choosing sides for basketball
It was long ago and far away
The world was younger than today
when dreams were all they gave for free
to ugly duckling girls like me

We all play the game, and when we dare
we cheat ourselves at solitaire
Inventing lovers on the phone
Repenting other lives unknown
that call and say - Come dance with me
and murmur vague obscenities
at ugly girls like me, at seventeen

"Society's Child"
by Janis Ian (age 15 in 1966)

Come to my door, baby
face is clean and shining black as the night
My mama went to answer
you know that you looked so fine
Now I could understand the tears and the shame
she called you boy instead of your name
When she wouldn't let you inside
when she turned and said
"But honey, he's not our kind"

She says I can't see you any more, baby
Can't see you anymore

Walk me down to school, baby
everybody's acting deaf and blind
Until they turn and say
"Why don't you stick to your own kind"
My teacchers all laugh, their smirking stares
cuttig deep down in our affairs
Preachers of equality
think they believe it
then why won't they just let us be

They say I can't see you any more, baby
Can't see you any more

One of these days I'm gonna stop my listening
gonna raise my head up high
One of these days I'm gonna raise up
my glistening wings and fly
But that day will have to wait for a while
baby, I'm only society's child
When we're older, things may change
but for now this is the way they must remain

I say I can't see you any more, baby
can't see you anymore
No, I don't want to see you any more
baby