The Mask

A poem

Photo by Armin Lotfi on Unsplash

Plastic faces in October
Handles for ladies with large dresses
Eyes holes for a Ranger

Shaped like a boy
Held tight and secure
She can’t be seen

Refuge from ridicule
Clutches shame and guilt
Making sense of muddled standards

Shaped like a man
Once pulled back like a curtain
Revealing who’s inside
A love lost
Back on it must but loosely fitted

Most days on, some days off
Now discarded
Another love lost

Living without the mask
No shame, No guilt, No standards
Discovering love was always underneath