A soft transparent painted mask
I slip upon my face
And through its eyes I see
This world a strangely new place

This world I see around me
A world that whirls around me
A strange place it is
But none the less it belongs to me

This world is a creation
Of my mind, soul and heart
From deep inside me
Is the place it starts

Beneath this mask
Am I the man I was
Or does this mask
Erase what was?

Is through this mask
A new me created
While the old me
Sits and waits un-satiated

How deep does this mask run
How far into me
Deep enough that
It affects everything I see

There is a knife in my hand
From where has this come?
It is coated with a thin veil of blood
What oh what have I done?

The me behind the mask
Screams cries and wails
A piteous wretched display
As against the mask it assails

The mask sneers and chides
The old into silence
Trust me he says
For I am our only source of reliance
The old me inside
Does away retreat
And the mask does gloat
For now its control is complete

A smile spreads across the face
Upon looking at the knife
A sneer follows the look
A total disregard has he for life

The inner self is all
But lost to the world
Seen only now and again in a fitful glance
From the place where it has itself hurled.