Everyday I wear a smile

I go out into the sun and I shine right along with it

I'm loud and exciting, like a one man circus

I joke and I laugh with my friends

I have fun and I enjoy myself, just like everyone else

Every night, I take it off

I sit alone, with my thoughts

These are the times when I can smile for real

When I don't feel the weight of the mask by my door

But I also don't have to smile, and that's okay, and I'm okay with it

Knowing that I don't have to smile is what makes it okay for me to smile

But outside, people expect a smile, and I can't always give them one

So I wear a smile

Somedays, when I put that mask on and go outside

I see all the smiles that everyone else is wearing

And I wonder if those are masks too

I wonder if they go home and take their smiles off and have real emotions

Or if they never take off the mask

Or if they don't need one