There’ll Be No Hiding Today
Sunlight dances on glass,
Brilliant, dazzling,
Cruel and relentless
As it travels over this
Imperfect landscape,
Highlighting every
Line and crevice,
Determined to show
Each blemish and flaw.
But the truth speaks aloud:
There’ll be no hiding today.
Wrinkles crawl and clamber,
Determined, insistent,
Forging a map over
Once-plump flesh that
Glowed with life but
Now screams of decay.
Fingertips paddle and pry
Stretching the skin as they
Hunt for lost youth.
But the truth cries aloud:
There’ll be no hiding today.
Clawed fingers crook and curl,
Useless, barren,
Gnarled and knotted
Like a fossilised oak
With so many tales to tell.
Ridges and lumps now
Wind and warp hands
That worked, that fought
And sang with strength.
But the truth crows aloud:
There’ll be no hiding today.
The mirror-twin stares back,
Stunned, bewildered,
Lipstick slipping its
Tethers to snake across
Ancient skin and find
New cracks to settle in.
A smile, wonky, nervous.
Stained and chipped teeth
Lean drunkenly in a too-wide mouth.
But the truth screams aloud:
There’ll be no hiding today.
But look closely at my map,
Eternal, unending,
Trace the pathways along
My face that time has
Marked for all to see
With everything I hold dear.
Memories whisper with every step,
Follow the laughter,
The tears and the wonder
For the truth laughs aloud:
There’ll be no hiding today.
Now look at these old hands,
Stout, dependable,
Hands that kept you up
When you fell, that
Pushed you on when you
Faltered and held you close
When your heart was breaking.
How mighty they have been.
How much love they have embraced.
And the truth sings aloud:
There’ll be no hiding today.
Sunlight glistens on my skin,
Shimmering, golden.
My life shines back,
A happy life, a hard life,
A sad life, a hopeful life,
A life that is all of the above
And so much more for it is
My own glorious life
That I cleave to and cherish.
And the truth sings aloud:
There’ll be no hiding today.
