Behind a Mask

Poem about a man hiding behind a mask

Photo by Javardh on Unsplash

His lips curved as he smiled
His eyes sparkled with joy
People thought he was beguiled
Everything was just a ploy.

Hiding his anger and his pain
Concealing himself with nobody to care
Everything would have been in vain
To be vulnerable and bold enough to share.

Looking at the mask over his face
In front of the mirror he stood
If only he could erase and replace
If only he wasn’t hiding under the hood.

How much he wished he could
To throw away the mask and start over.
He knew it would be anything but good,
Since there wasn’t nothing leftover.

He was a shell with no voice
Life had barely begun, yet was gone,
There was no other option or choice
The mask must and had to stay on.