The man behind the mask
by Naushali Navaratne, Harkaway Hills College
Years 7 – 8 Performance Poetry Finalist
There he stood, among them all,
Motionless amid the markets roar,
His coat covered with vibrant green,
The happiest man I had ever seen.
His chest adorned with sunshine,
And his sleeves shielded by peace,
Surrounded by overflowing, fruit crates,
And decorative palm leaves.
A smile so warm, it melted my heart,
While all stood to admire his work of art,
As the cameras flashed, he beamed with delight,
Radiating to all his glowing light.
The children pointed, ecstatic with glee,
“Look!” they said, “How grand is he!”,
They saw the fruit, the smile, the laugh,
Yet never knew the man behind the mask.
But his eyes betrayed his smile so wide,
Constantly I wondered what he had to hide,
What stories did he have?
The good, the bad.
Perhaps there was more than met the eye,
A hidden story that made me ask why?
Beneath the laughter and melodic sound,
What hidden memories could be found?
Could smiles be masks that we learn to wear?
To hide the sufferings that we all bear.
Like fruit so perfect, so shiny, so clean,
While rot lies beneath the skin’s gleam.
Maybe he had laughed all day long,
Until the streets had ended their song,
Until the sun began to fade,
Then ‘away!’ to the smile he bade.
So now, before I walk away,
I choose, just for a moment to stay,
Because perhaps the greatest gift that I can give,
Is a reason to smile, or a memory to relive.
How did writing this poem make you feel?
Writing this poem made me stop and think about how we never really know what someone is going through, and a lot of the time, the people with the biggest smiles are the ones struggling the most. It also reminded me how even one small act of kindness can make a big difference.
Which single line in your poem are you the absolute proudest of?
My favorite line and the one that I am proudest of is, ‘Like fruit so perfect, so shiny, so clean, while rot lies beneath the skin’s gleam.’.
Describe your poem in three words
Vivid, reflective, mysterious.
Where is your absolute favourite place to sit when you are brainstorming ideas?
My favourite place to sit while brainstorming ideas is outside, because you can gain so much inspiration from nature!
What skills do you think you strengthened through writing this poem?
I think that writing an Ekphrastic poem helped me to really focus on what you can see and describing that well, instead of rushing over the details.
Why do you think people write poetry?
People write poetry to prompt readers to think and to explore big ideas and themes, helping them to view them in a different light.