Mirrored Are Those Eyes Poem by Lawrence S. Pertillar

Mirrored are those eyes,
We turn our own away from quickly.
Instantly we see ourselves reflected.
To refuse admitting,
An image we can not accept.
An image of hopelessness and neglect.
Left defenseless.
And aware of despair in silence to grieve.

Out of breath we rush to leave,
With kept denials protected.
And as shields we use pretense to delude.
Feeling safe from those mirrored eyes,
We do.
Feeling safe we have defied,
Another day surviving a guilt to feel.
Choosing...
Our misdeeds and selfish need to feed,
A greed that keeps others reminding us...
Of it.
While we smother to covet,
Desires, wishes and dreams of others.
We can not face but leaves us haunted.