Drowning in Sadness

by Amy
(North Carolina)

Have you ever felt like you were drowning
In a deep, murky lake of darkness?
You can feel the liquid ugly
Seeping into your head
Filling you with feeling sad
As tears break through the mask.

Have you ever felt the mask
Slipping as you were drowning
In your own sad
Tears? All you saw was darkness
And you couldn’t hold up your head
Because you felt too ugly?

Have you ever felt so ugly
That you needed a mask
To cover your head?
You felt as if you were drowning
In profound darkness;
You felt overwhelmingly sad?

Have you ever felt so sad
That you convinced yourself you were ugly?
Surrounded by the darkness,
You took off your mask
And found yourself drowning
In water that wasn’t even over your head.

Have you ever hung your head
Because you felt so sad?
Emotions that were drowning
You were so ugly
You looked for a mask
To hide your face in the darkness.

Have you ever been in darkness
So long that you lost your head?
You forgot your mask
And let others see your sad
Face and realize that you felt ugly
Inside and you were drowning.

You can throw away the mask! It’s okay to be in darkness!
You aren’t really drowning, so lift up your head!
You’re just sad. Even your worst emotions are beautiful, not ugly!