Introduction
Most of the time, whether I am with friends, or my kids, or even on social media, I put on what I call the (mask).
I’m loud, cheerful, and borderline annoying.
I do it on purpose so that people won’t see the extreme pain and sadness that hides within.
When I wrote this poem, I felt conflicted. I had people telling me it’s ok to be myself, but when I tried to be, I was told I needed professional help.
Some would see my “mask” and say things like “that girl is just too innocent.” Or “Is she high?”
I wasn’t either of those things. But people will have their opinions and their judgements. All i could do was try to be as genuine as possible, and if people didn’t accept me for me, well, not my problem.
This poem is a short little thing but still very much comes from the heart. It’s about expectations people have of me, and how overwhelmed I felt, trying to be all the things others wanted me to be without going insane.
The Mask
Wake up,
put on a smile,
make sure no one knows your pain.
Laugh at jokes,
act obnoxious,
keep on the mask.
No one can see your face.
Take a bow when the show is done.
Slip up once,
drop everything and run!
No one can ever see the craziness in your head.
Put on a good act and entertain instead.
Damn the world,
no one cares!
Hide from everyone,
because, your act starts to tare.
Try fight the voices telling you that you’re nothing.
Don’t give in;
no matter how tired you may feel.
Drown them out,
in order to try to heal.
