"How to see life through a black hole"

I am the navel of an eighteen year-old girl. I am not one of those people who like to boast about themselves but I must say that I’m one of the most beautiful and special parts of our body. I am unique. I am not as the legs, the arms, the hands, etc, etc, who are working in pairs; I am independent. You may say that the nose is independent as well, but it is always cold, red and being blown, if that is a life I’d better commit suicide!
We were born at the same time. Well in fact, like a butterfly, I had a previous life. I used to be something but then, I changed into something completely different and much prettier. At the very beginning, I used to be the umbilical cordon that joined us to our mother but then I gained complete independence after the doctor cut me (needless to say, that was one of the most shocking experiences of my life).
I am right in the centre of the belly. We have a very beautiful flat belly and an appealing slim-waist; I can say that I’m really proud of the part of the body where I live. I have never heard any complaints about us. When we were much younger, we used to wear short t-shirts and low-hipped trousers, especially in summer. In that way, I could enjoy the world I so much loved. Oh! I think I forgot to tell you that I can see the whole world because I’m different from other introverted navels. I have never been shy, so I could not understand why I had to be hidden inside a dark hole. Although our parents did useless, -and sometimes stupid- things to get me back inside –such as cover me with scotch tape-, I was not going to give in.
Well, as I was telling you, I have spent a good part of my life sunbathing, wearing really scanty clothes. But then we grew up, reached our teens and decided that we should be more reserved. Anyhow, I know that I’m still special for her because she has never complained about my being different from the others; on the contrary, she loves me. However, do not think that life here is wonderful. Some people who are not satisfied with our inborn beauty want to pierce us. I will never forget last summer when we went shopping with a friend of ours. In fact, I did not want to go. I was tired because we had been sitting all day and –although we are thin- a roll had been squashing me and I could not breathe (I must admit that I almost cried that day). But I changed my mind because I thought we were going to buy something nice for me such as a colourful t-shirt and not those boring undershirts we are accustomed to wear in winter.
Unfortunately, I was wrong and we both saw how our friend’s navel was pierced. Poor Bobby (that was our friend’s navel’s name), we were talking on the way and he seemed to know what would happen to him. The worst thing was that I thought I was going to be next. Thank God, we are very sensitive and would never do such a thing. That day will be engraved in my memory forever, I could have died twice: once squashed by that disgusting roll and the other one stabbed mercilessly.
Another problem of being outside is that you get cold easily in winter. Nevertheless, nowadays I’m trying to reflect on my way to face life. I mean, now I can see that I used to spend most of the time contemplating myself, thinking too much about my own problems. But after seeing what happened to poor Bobby, I have realized that there are navels in the world with much more serious problems than mine.
To be honest, I cannot complain. I am in the middle of our body, neither too high nor too low. In spite of being different, I am not discriminated; on the contrary I am loved and admired by everyone (vanity is another issue). Needless to say, my parents also accepted me so that the four of us live happily together without taking into account what others may think of us.