Poetry

Spring 2014 Issue

Masks

By Evelyn Marie Ruble
Ayer Shirley Regional High School. Grade 11.

Instead of pushing me aside you simply broke down my pride;

You called me out upon the waters, the great unknown.

had to cover my shame.

I veiled myself with the only thing I was given:

A Mask.

Now this mask was unlike any other;

It held gold, silver and jewels.

Beauty itself could not compare,

for me to leave without it was rare.

I had this fake self

that none knew about, 

and I loved it. 

My mask hid the truth from the world.

I lived a lie.

My mask made me feel safe.

I lived a lie.

My mask covered every flaw.

I lived a lie.

Even though my lie had a million truths to it,

I still lived a lie,

But then you walked in, 

book in hand, 

smile on your face.

I remember that feeling of rage

and being out of place.

I thought of you as a threat 

to take down my walls and win.

Yet you gave me sudden acts of kindness;

You loved me though I was bitter and stubborn.

I had a war inside my head,

monsters to tame,

and nobody knew —

Nobody knew, but one sit down and it was like you could see right through me.

Instead of pushing me aside you simply broke down my pride;

You called me out upon the waters, the great unknown.

You called me your daughter, you called me your own.

You said I had too much to keep hidden.

I had a heart of sun, not stone.

People just passed me by,

but you.

I no longer had a desert soul,

a mind in the drought of summer.

You gave me life.

Sometimes I wonder who taught me to wear a mask,

or if I learned it on my own,

but I do know who taught me to wear a crown.

Now this crown was unlike any other.

It had bravery, courage and awareness 

engraved on its crescents and fine cuts. 

I take it everywhere.

So what are you wearing?

A mask or a crown?

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