i never understood how people can be so obvious about their pain.
how they wear sadness on their face as bold as a bloodstain.
their movements lethargic and their shoulders turned down.
i never understood how they could so easily frown.
aren't you supposed to hide that all from the outside world?
keep it bottled up inside you, leave it in your stomach to swirl?
put a smile on your face and speak in uppercase,
take up only pleasantness and joy in your space
because how dare i think my feelings matter?
that i'm important enough to dull the chatter?
i'm only one among so many billions and more
why should i deem myself too cardinal to ignore?
so i lock my misery up and throw the key away
and then i wonder why no one asks me if i'm okay.