Mother you made me wear your coat of shame
A garment of lies you had created for me
A coat that never really belonged to me
I wore it as a cover-up
I wore it to please you
I wore it because I love you
And even though you're gone
I use love not in the past form
However one day my porcelain mask fell off
It hit the ground and shattered
It was time for me to spread my wings
My turn to fly ...
I was unable to continue playing the part
A role I had been given ... Like an actor in a play
A voice cried from deep within ... Be yourself!!!
Yet the weeds around my neck were still choking me
Words of obscenity they whispered in my ears ... ungrateful ******* is he
Oh how I wished they could have shared in the weight of my coat
A different tune they might have sung
They never felt its weight ... They never smelt its stench
How many times did I wish to take it off and wash it clean
Or simply toss it into the fire
Yet that coat taught me a lot
I could never lie to myself again ... A mask I could never wear again
They slip, they fall, they break, and they melt when the truth prevails
Yet from behind that mask I learned things
That no professor could ever have taught me