When I was fifteenI discovered my secretWhat society deemed an afflictionWhat my friends laughed about.
Convinced of its monstrosityAfraid of being shunnedI decided to lock the animal upPushing it deep inside the closet of my mind
Hoping that it would disappearPraying that it was just a phase.Believed that the veils of denial,Would make it go away.
And when this failed,The scars on my bare heart would deepen,From the whips and lashes of Guilt, Shame and Disappointment.I begged them to stop,In the dark cold nights,Where no one could see those tearsOr hear my desperate cries.
Can you imagine the resolve it takes?To put on a mask of smileWhile war wages at each momentThat threatens to tear you apart
EventuallyI would come to terms with my fateSurrendering myself to numbness of unfathomable depth.It would no longer pain,Because it would no longer matter.I could no longer lie to myself.But the lie about myself,Would be the truth for everyone else-Forever.
But in this darkest nightA few sunrays managed to pierce the darknessGiving me the warmth and comfort that I didn’t knowSlowly chipping away the walls of fearGiving me the courage to do,What seemed unthinkable before.
I finally opened the doors of the closet.And the sight in front of me was the most unexpected.It felt like I was looking into a mirror.But the smile and radiance and the beauty of the reflectionWas something I had never seen before.The clouds in the skyCould no longer hold the tears and emotionsPouring it all out over meThe old forgotten scars,Would vanish at the touch of the tears.
At the beach of self-acceptance,The caged bird of HappinessFinally releasedAnd the Ocean of RainbowRaged in front of me.As the waves crashed the shoreDrenching me in its beautiful coloursOf hope and loveSetting me freeAnd taking away the broken shackles.I could finally see a worldWhere I could live my lifeWithout any shame.
With this my own journey beginsAlong with countless others.The path is long and difficult,With many battles lying aheadBut none of them shall stop us,With the fires of PrideUnleashed in our heartsWe will continue to fightAnd march ahead,To realise our dreamOf a better world.