#masks poems on Hello Poetry

Michael Apr 2021

Fabric and strings,
I'm sick of these things
that smother my face
and muzzle my screams!
What are these things
I hate you might ask?
Just give me a match,
I'll burn up my mask!

That's just how I feel.

#burning #masks

Emmi Forbes Feb 2021

9/3/2020

what a gift to
remove the layer of
sense dulling
fabric and
breathe
the air

the first in a series I started during my first year of teaching in 2020 called “Recess Poetry.” all words written during our 20 minutes outside each day.

#recess #poetry #masks #pandemic #freedom

Gangothrii Jan 2021

Facades

Some lines that etches the happiness at heart,
Some left scars of pretence on our part,
They cracked the creases we called our smiles,
Look closer to see the tremors they hide.

Masks many wore tend to come adrift,
The pain we bore brought solace no swift.
Tears unshed clung to lashes with might,
Dare not fall, for there's left no fight.

#sad #life #poems #bleedinghearts #soul #pain #alone #masks #people

Abraham Jan 2021

Ode to Mask

I used to get very annoyed with my mask
each day I’d implore, “Is it too much to ask -
that my glasses don’t steam up when I walk in a shop
or to not have to swallow down buckets of snot?”
But lately my viewpoint has started to waiver
as I discover new uses for this multi-lifesaver
like wiping the grit from my spectacle lenses
or warming my beard when I’m out mending fences.

Then there are subtler means of employ
(I’m not talking about some ***** *** toy)
where this sliver of material,
though appearing unmanly,
has proven itself surprisingly handy.
Only last week, on a long evening walk
I crept into a church round the back of Earls Court
and sat down to the tones of an ***** concerto
that whirled within me like Dante’s Inferno.
Out of the blue I began to cry
emotions stuffed deep inside reached for the sky,
streams gushed forth from each quivering eye lid
I’d not wept so fiercely since being a kid
yet though it did not cover the whole of my face
with my mask pulled high I was
at least,
saved some disgrace.

When this is all over (I promise it will)
hold a thought for how
your mask did fulfill
so many functions,
besides helping you survive
and perhaps carry one in your pocket
to keep the memory alive.

#masks #pandemic #covid19 #appreciation #gratitude #privacy #vulnerability

John McCafferty Dec 2020

Cherish

Done are the days of May
You could say we moved on
Spent into early retirement
As raw breaths fade away
All there is is change

The importance of a moment
Instilled inside this frame
To have and to hold in exchange
Consumed to idle eyes
A gift for you and I

The view of which describes
Is fleeting if you let it pass by
Who you are and what to do
Escapism clasps many masks
Only shown to grace the task of life

(@PoeticTetra - instagram/twitter)

#days #moved #into #departure #breaths #change #importance #instilled #fleeting #masks

Roger Turner - Poet Dec 2020

Arrows on the floor

I see people driving
A normal, daily task
Even though they are alone
They're still wearing a mask

I find this confusing
A mask inside the car
But, who am I to judge them
It might not be their car

They follow all the road signs
Stop when the light is red
But, still they go on driving
With a mask there on their head

They drive with such precision
Their aim, to reach the store
Once there, they can not follow
Simple arrows on the floor

They head up every aisle
Against the shopping flow
The arrows show direction
How can these folks not know?

Their mask is also missing
It is hanging off their chin
And when the mask is *****
They can't throw it in the bin

They drive home with no problem
They have no mask this time
They do things without reason
They do them without rhyme

It's really, really simple
When you're shopping in a store
Wear your mask correctly
And follow arrows on the floor

Stay safe, keep your distance
Wash your hands, and follow rules
Kids make it look easy
While adults look like fools

Wear your mask inside the car
No one says you can't
But, please follow the arrows
So others do not rant.

#arrows #virus #stupid #people #masks #driving

Kagiso Universalis Dec 2020

I Am The Raccoon

But what does that mean?
I am the raccoon
Oblivious I’ve been

I once was a monkey
To make laugh was to live
I still am a monkey
much joy I still give

The monkey inside me
Might act as a cloak
Was the monkey inside me
Joker or Joke

The monkey, the mask
I thought it not me
The monkey, the mask
I did not yet see
That the monkey, the mask
Is a part of me

I am the raccoon
In case someone asks
I am the raccoon
Master of masks

A fox I once felt me
and foxy I was
A hunter I felt me
slick tongue and sharp jaws

The fox he was smart
And good at love’s game
But the fox he knew
Quick love ain’t the same

The fox, the mask
Charming and sly
The fox, the mask
Was wondering why
Why the fox, the mask
So hard he did try

I am the raccoon
Though cute my appeal
I am the raccoon
Your heart I will steal

The lion I’ve played
When time came to lead
The lion I’ve played
By word and by deed

When I was the lion
The orders I gave
When I was the lion
Like a king I’d behave

The lion, the mask
With a queen by my side
The lion, the mask
At the head of the pride
Felt the lion, the mask
Was not my true hide

I am the raccoon
I finally see
I am the raccoon
The masks they are me
Yet behind all these masks
Hides my curious mind
A little raccoon
Caring and kind
When he scavenges life
Happiness he does find
He shares it with all
And leaves no-one behind
🦝🐵🦊🦁🐘🐅🦓

The Raccoon is my spirit animal
And an artistic lense through which I view myself
This poem is my artist manifesto
It grows as I obtain new masks
And learn to put those to good use

#animals #masks #hiding #talent #artist #art #bard #bardic