What if you were here today?



Cupid at the Masked Ball
by Franz Von Stuck

What if you were here today?

Would quavering voice or a salty stray tear betray?

Hands, would you shake or shiver?

Lips, I would forbid you to quiver

I would hope to appear as a strong, unbroken stone

Though cold-hard down to my core; so very much alone

I would have you see me standing up – my posture straight and tall

Not knowing how you had crushed me – or how far I once did fall

What if you were here today?

You would see the mask I wear each day

Covering my visage with an inscrutable disguise

Concealing my most painful scars - created by your lies