He Hides From Himself

He hides his baleful expression behind his hands,
He doesn't dare show it to these monsters in the room.
He doesn't dare.
The monsters skid their claws along countertops and floorboards.
All the while he hides behind his hands.
He can remember a time from before,
When he was supercilious.
When he was the precipice.
Now he hides behind his hands.

The bane of it now is that he hides from the monsters in the room,
He hides from their fastidious gnawing of bones.
Hides from his own reflection of the mirror that hangs strategically above the bar where the patrons can't hide from view.
But he finds a way to hide from himself.

The monsters gesticulate their limbs,
Some from losing a game of poker,
Some from losing their heads.
He doesn't dare look at the monsters,
He doesn't dare.
He continues to hide behind his hands.

He hides from his fake demure attitude,
He knows it's just a ruse to fool others.
Though the monsters raise their eyebrows,
As if to say 'we know what you really are'
But he hides from that too.
The monsters give him more time,
So he can arrest his thoughts and stop hiding behind his hands.
All the monsters have are time after all.

He hides his face behind his hands,
Remembering when he was the wonderous,
When he wasn't this.
The monsters smile, teeth and fangs gleaming in the iridescent light,
Calling him closer.
His stomach churns in disgust.

He's still hiding his face behind his hands,
Hiding from the monsters in the room,
From the bartender who stopped serving him whiskey shots not much longer then an hour before,
From the mirror that shows him as he is,
He hides from himself.

Reviews

[Kenneth The Poet]

A true to life piece, wasting away in a downtown bar because it's easier than conquering one's own demons. An excellent work I think.

[Teri B]

Hiding one's true feelings, one's recognition of mortality, and one's fear of failing behind masks is such a predictable human flaw, isn't it? We should just be who we are, and let the chips fall where they may.

[unknown]

Wow really good, i think it's a great perspective. I think we all hide from ourselves sometimes.

[Cassie Fraga]

NICE WORK!!! **high-fives the screen** love how you capture a story... and something Im sure every one of us can relate too in some way or another... that was a great read!!!
**keep that ink flowin**

[Chelsea]

Oh my. :) This poem is wonderfully constructed and tells a story, though not over time, but a story in a single frozen moment. Loved it!

[fireblossom]

Nice work. It put me in mind of the play 'The Ice Man Cometh' and the movie 'The Misfits'. Both feature people who hide from themselves and their true motives and both feature characters coming to terms with the same. Your 'He' is undergoing a process. Interesting use of the mirror. Good writing.

[Poetic Beauty]

Many times in life people know they have a problem, they know they are no longer the person they use to be should be and they try to hide from it. They don't want others knowing about the monsters they see and the monster they have become.

[Coyote Poetry]

This is powerful poetry. Many ways to hide the monsters. I like the way you told the story in this poem. Some battles are a lifetime battle never to be won till death. No weakness in this poem. Create a sad situation with a hard road to be upon. Thank you for the outstanding poem.
Coyote