Hidden Poem by Joyce Rugg

You say the truth’s what you want to hear,
But experience makes me lie
Survival is keeping my poker face,
It’s smiling when I want to cry

The reason I build you up,
When I’d pay to see you fall
Obey your command to run
Without the strength to crawl

Why I reach for a pen
When I want a knife;
Why I put the lighter down,
Not bring flames to life

I’ve played your game so long,
I’ve learned how to win:
Blur the line between the mask
And my bloodied skin

Speak with a stranger’s words,
The script etched in my mind
Lock away my soul,
The shell’s all you’ll find

Continue to slave for you
Though nothing’s all I give
How much of myself must I kill,
Before you’ll let me live?