Beware of Smiles

because at times they mask honesty
and kindness with just a twist of the lips. A curling iron
makes spirals out of bone straight hair. But when
the wind comes blowing through, those ready-made

corkscrew strands unwind into their original flat,
limp selves again. Some smiles are patronizing. They have
a way of making you feel inferior. They mock you
with sweet words that look like sugar-coated candy but tastes

more like poison. It’s too late when you realize what you swallowed.  The harm is already done. Oh, the wiles
of them! Making you feel important. Making you do things
you wouldn’t do. It’s just guile dressed up in patent leather shoes