Life as a Stage

Lying relentlessly,
Through tightly clenched teeth,
Broken promises,
Of what lies beneath.

Resentful words,
That cut to the bone,
They tell of a heart,
Become hard as stone.

Corrupted thoughts,
Hidden rage,
Life is a play,
This is the stage.

So we dress it up nice,
And learn every line,
The audience claps,
At a cast so divine.

We take our bow,
And have our moment of glory,
Standing in the spotlight,
But that is not our story.

When the lights go down,
And the curtains close,
When no one is watching,
And no one knows.

We tear down our walls,
And vent all our pain,
Then build them back up,
Around the life we ordain.

Feeling quite guilty,
But still looking pristine,
We put on our mask,
We have yet to be seen.

Until our final act,
This is the life we lead,
To cover up our shame,
We're filled with hate and greed.

Pride and vengeance build us up,
But the foundation has a crack,
Patience, love, and truth,
Are some things we lack.

We fake our smiles,
And learn our role,
What we don't realize,
Is time takes it's toll.

Some day we'll fall,
And those walls will crumble,
And we can only hope,
That on stage we don't stumble.

Then standing at the gates of heaven,
Our true character is revealed,
So let's use our better judgment,
Before eternity is sealed.

Play the person most like us,
When we're standing on the stage,
Even if we aren't perfect,
And sometimes filled with rage.

Live our lives in such a way,
That the audience applauds,
Not only at the role we play,
But also as our flaws.

Because true character is revealed,
When life is as it seems,
All the way to backstage passes,
And in between the scenes.