One day I had a dream
It was nothing like before
What I saw was a happy man
With everything at his door

He had a lovely wife
With a smile that could melt his heart
A son who wanted to be just like
The man his father was

His daughter was the apple of his eye
In him she did no wrong
The picture perfect family
For the man who looked so strong

I watched for a while, and then looked deeper
To see inside the man
And found that within his soul
Was a boy much weaker

He kept his days so busy
Hardly allowing time for himself
He was always with someone
Yet, he was always by himself

Enjoying time with his wife
Playing with his kids
Cracking jokes and having fun
The mask that was his life

The mask never seemed to drop
Because someone might see
The evidence of sadness
Where there should not be

In a crowd his manly voice
Was seldom ever heard
Even with two or three
He had to fight for words

Not that he had trouble speaking
Or understanding the news
He just felt like an outcast
“Who didn’t know their views”

“Not like us”, He hears their chorus
Though they didn’t speak the words
Their facial expressions and tone of voice
Are felt like piercing swords

Unable to compete with life
He spreads his time so thin
Never knowing what he wants
Just trying to fit in

Slowly I could see the unfinished life
This man was actually living
Not so happy were his days
Just a shade of gray

I tried to talk to the man
And make him see his life
But he continued on his way
With two kids and a wife

I screamed at him
And tried to make him listen
To see the errors of his ways
And start a new tradition

Then I realized he could not hear
Not because he did not listen
Then man that I was yelling at
Was just a mere reflection

d4h... that is deep and beautifuly worded... no wee-ones here, but i feel your joy in them... i have screamed at my reflection many times, with the same realization...

thank you
and be well

samm