We want to be real with nothing to hide

But truthfully we keep most things bottled inside

With outward smiles and surface reactions

We’re on a slippery hill with no emotional traction.

We laugh and we grin though we’re dying alone

And don’t let others hear our soul’s painful moans

Over our inability to show how we feel

When the weight becomes heavy and loneliness real.

“Get a job! Study school! Oh and keep your life cheerful.”

We’re told all this and the whole time we’re fearful

That someone will see us and look in our eyes

And finally unweave all lies.

“Please help me, I’m lonely!” Our desperate attempts

Will die on our lips and remain unsaid.

Because we all know (we are taught all our lives)

A person can’t break; we must learn to survive.

But truly our culture is the thing broken

If we must ignore feelings or leave them unspoken.

The double standards we face everyday

Will soon become lost if we find our honest way.

Honesty, trust, putting love on the line

Is the way to be real and show that you shine.

Stop hiding the real you, I’m waiting to see

What you can accomplish when you show the real you to me.