Bars surround me 

like a cage.

No sense of privacy,

for I am upon a stage.

Eyes everywhere...

watching.

Watching my every move...

waiting.

Waiting for me to rise 

or fail.

I tell myself, "I must prevail".

Lead my life under a veil 

to cover everything 

so they cannot see me

sinking.

I move within the parameters of my cage, 

for this is the room I am granted.

I ask myself when will I be free?

To be me...

to move out of hiding ...

to stop pretending...

to stop living for others...

to live for myself.

In these rare hours, 

I begin to see 

that I don't know me

and where I should be.

My future is obscure, 

and that frightens me.

Mentally, 

I am working...

working to break the bars of this life that 

strains me. 

I am not happy.

It's that simple.

When I close my eyes, 

I see nothing. 

I may not know who I am,

or what I am destined to do.

But what I do know is that

I want to break free.

Tear down every bar,

to show they do not own me.