Beneath the Veneer

Jun 3

Written By Neela W

Beneath the Veneer by Sienna Hitchcock

The teenage years, a concealer a shade too bright

Masking the struggles that lurk in the hot and humid night

Outwardly a front of confidence, of grade, and of grace

Inwardly, a battle to find one's passion, talent, and place

The pressure to fit in, to be seen as cool

Leads to choices that can make one act like a fool

Pull back the curtain, substance abuse acts as a temporary escape

Hiding the pain in my knee from the societal scrape

The window opens to a wind of depression and anxiety, a silent cry

Buried beneath white and yellow smiles that hide the lie

Hidden in my locked and secret drawer, eating disorders, a desperate plea for control

Concealing the turmoil within one's soul

Behind the laughs and flavored smoke, a hap girl will continue to groan

Always with her friends because she lacks a home and family of her own

And covered by a boy’s plastic gold chain and rings

Is a shirt worn every day, handed down like worms from a mother’s beak and wings

Covered by a porcelain toilet seat, are vomit and water and words of shame

Given to by social media stars who no one can even name

And behind a door with a shining wreath holstered on

Is a family with screams and slaps heard til’ the light of dawn

Bullying and peer pressure, a constant and tiring test

The pubescent and cloudy forecast that rains the need to be the best

Water in the vase, to be in a relationship, a minefield to navigate

Put the pretty flowers in the front to mask the fear of being left til’ it is too late

Yet beneath the veneer, a story untold

A journey of growth, a tale illegally sold

The teenage years, are they a time to embrace?

To shed the facade and find ones own pace

Imaginary Friend