Persona off,
it was years before
I heard your real voice,
soothing and preferred.
I saw you before the slip.
You are not invisible.
At what age did you learn
to slap on an Insta-Grin?
Do you remember the city?
Who was in the room?
Which pieces were you
conditioned to conceal?
What was the first heartbreak
you smiled through?
How many since then?
Can you remember?
Do you marathon through
or around?
Who do you let in?
Is there a password
or secret handshake?
How deep do you crack?
When are you allowed to feel?
How do you fall apart?
Who holds you whole?
-Melissa Donley