I wrote a poem and I wanted to share it with people who would hopefully understand it

And then there were the smiling faces, plastered on to hide the weight that has piled up day after day.

The classrooms were filled with laughter and chatter, yet beneath it lay hollowness, the exhaustion behind the eyes, the nights of crying alone in the dark, the hearts that pounded for no reason at all.

Still, the system controls is, counting test scores and attendance, blind to the breaking within.

There was no relief, no moment for breath, only the demand to keep pushing forward.

And even at such a young age, I had to learn to wear masks better than the adults, the truth buried so deep it seemed impossible to reach.