Mardi Gras

I stumbled upon you –
Feathered, fleeced, fluffed like fashion’s
Coronation of follies, Checklisted
As our eyes, purposed to
Peel the smooth layered exterior
Of that costume subterfuge.

Music chorused. Feathers and arms perfunctorily
Linked themselves, a temporary cell
Incongruous in its gaiety, at once twin and anti-thesis
To life’s dank and dark gallows.

Perhaps, beneath those smiling eyes
There would be- teary sheen of a mother’s hopes;
Closed lip – lash of a father’s wrath,
Dark brow – furrows of a sisterly love,
And stubborn nose – vengeful kisses of a lover’s tantrums.

Perhaps, underneath all that, there would be

you?