Pride, misunderstood.

Scared little girl
Under masks of smiles,
I'm so proud of you.

You know the pain will only ease
When you take your last breath,
And yet, here you are,
Under masks of smiles.

Standing up as tall as you can,
Looking the world in the eye,
Smiling and laughing and dancing and singing,
As if you have no care in the world -
I'm so proud of you.

When you're all alone at home, you take them off,
Lay them out on your bedside table,
As the tears you've cried all day slowly dry
From the cracking surfaces,
Pain warms the path it takes,
Trickling down your cheek.

You sob and cry, curled up in agony,
As your masks watch in porcelain silence,
Unable to help.

Climb into bed and pray for a new day,
Pray for strength,
Thank the heavens for your faithful masks,
And cry until you're too exhausted to move.

Fall asleep, dream restless dreams,
Wake up every hour or so -
Repeat.

When morning dawns,
Wash your tear stained face
And carefully place your masks
Over closed eyes and trembling lips.

Seal them in place with a prayer
And a shaky smile that doesn't reach your eyes.

A new day has come -
And I am so proud of you.