This is Me

Lines 33 Written for Rhythm and Rhymes contest. A poem about your personal insecurities and doubts.

Who Am I?

Who am I? Always trying to be kind.
Sometimes denying, hiding my true self behind
My crablike shell!
Protecting, pretending, perhaps afraid to tell.

I look in the mirror many times each day.
‘You’re old,’ I say,
As I preen and cover,
As if I’m waiting for a lover.

No signs of grey,
It’s banished, dismissed, forbidden to remain.
Blemishes are creamed away,
Dry lips covered, scarlet painted.

Party girl? I hide distaste.
Make excuses for my haste.
Exit while the night’s still young,
For my soft bed and home, I long.

Do I judge too quickly?
Some people make me prickly.
Patience, not something I possess.
I cannot wait nor deny, I self-confess.

Daily I dress, not just in clothes.
Put on a suit of stronger robes
My own true self I don’t disclose.
My true feelings I can’t expose.

Although it’s nice when others say
My presence alone has made their day.
Made it brighter, lighter, wiped away their frown,
When I joke and act the clown.

So, this is who I am! This is me,
Complex, amalgamated, same as thee.
Dependent on mood, place or time,
The good, the bad: I cannot be defined.