Wear the mask of Venice-
once we are unknown
all we reveal is intention,
action,
desire.
No longer
a doctor, politician,
lawyer, entrepreneur,
street cleaner,
wealthy or poor.
Who are you
when you are no longer you?
How do you touch
feel, dance, create,
make others feel
in the end?
Put on your Venetian mask
and see what you do
with freedom of spirit,
equality, anonymity,
on the hills of Tuscany,
or on the streets of Harlem.
Have you had the courage
to find yourself
wearing a mask of Venice,
when time and place
and identity is merely
a blank canvas,
an image yet to be painted?
The mask of Venice may
lay naked an identity drunk
with pretense and disguise—
Yet, the masks
worn to deceive
ourselves and others
are the invisible ones,
the ones we use to masquerade daily —
dancing stiffly to our usual routines,
shallow smiles, charming greetings,
clipped wings,
resembling a version of ourselves
without undressing our-selves.
And maybe we realize, one day,
that time is not gracious
for those of us
fearful of the mask of Venice.
Diana Poulos-Lutz has a B.A. and an M.A. in Political Science from Long Island University and has studied Political Theory and American Politics at the New School for Social Research. She has taught Political Science and Political Theory courses for several years at Long Island University. She currently works at a public high school. Diana is also a photographer and writes about the natural world on Long Island. She is a contributing writer and photographer for the Long Island-based website Fire Island and Beyond. The Town of North Hempstead recently hosted a photographic and literary gallery of Diana's Long Island Nature photography at the historic Clark House at Clark Botanic Garden in Albertson. Her poems have recently been featured on Pantsuit Nation and New Verse News. Diana's poetry is inspired by her deep connection to the natural world, along with her desire to promote equality and empowerment.
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