You Who Hide Your Pain... Poem by Kelsey Gallant

You laugh and smile, you talk and grin
All to hide what you’re feeling within
I see through your laugh
Your smile is glass
Alone in your world of pain

You seem so secure
You act reassured
“Nothing’s wrong, come on, let’s hang out”
You and your sixteen boyfriends
But I can see your doubts

I asked you once, ”Why do you always swear? ””
You told me it’s how you vent your anger
I didn’t get it then, didn’t understand
You knew I wouldn’t, with my “perfect” life
But I see it now, the anger that’s there

You asked me questions I thought were mean
You made fun of my friend, your words were obscene
I thought you were so obnoxious
I just didn’t see—
Maybe you wanted, for a moment or more, to be my friend or me

“”Guess what I did on my weekend, ”” you brag
“”Got drunk, had sex, did drugs””
Horrified, my opinion was, “Wow, she’s a creep””
When all you ever really needed
Was love

We ignored you, ‘cause you were mean to us first
We looked and found reasons to hate you
All that time I never saw your hurt
You’re good at hiding, good at lying
“”I’m fine, ” you say, ”I’m totally fine.””

To those who don’t know you you’re just another girl
Another high-school student, one of millions in the world
You’re loud and talkative, with loud groups of “friends””
Are they really friends? Do they know the real you?
The pretense you live is not who you are

You gave me a piece of your soul that day
When you told me the reason you swear
I never saw before—
Me, with my loving family, nice house, Christian faith
You with your shattered life, feeling unloved

I don’t know your whole story, but I can guess
You r parents don’t care; I don’t know the rest
Still, I know you’re hurting, you need help
It seems too late for me to help you—you’re gone without a trace
I don’t see you anymore, but you still need love and faith

So I pray for you now, every day
Though I no longer see you, God always does
You need Him, He’ll help you, He loves you no matter what
God’s with you forever, and I pray that someday
You’ll realize this, you’ll turn to Him, you’ll beg forgiveness, and finally change.