Collection of Poetry - 1. Who Am I?

Who am I?

When I cry, the world Watches
The world Judges
When I smile, the world Sneers
The world Mocks

Who am I?
I am a product of their condemnations

They look at me with those eyes,
and they see only my flaws
My soul lays naked before them
and they clothe it as they see fit,
as they want me to be

Who am I?
I am a template for them to recreate themselves

I look down at my hands,
and they are not mine
I look into the mirror,
and I see a stranger
These are the hands they want them to be
This is the face I am told to wear

Who am I?
I am tangled mess of self-deceit

It is just one in a long line of masks I have hidden behind
Every one thrown out as I fail them time and again
Day after day, year after year, I dance as they pull the strings
I am a replaceable cog in an efficient machine

Who am I?
I am but a means to their end

Who am I?
I turn to ask them this and they say nothing
They say nothing, because that is what I am
I am not unique; I have become the masks I wear

I know who I’m not: me
But I still don’t know who I am