Behind the Smile: The Faces We Never Really See

Poetry in a Northern Kitchen by DislexicPoet:

Some people smile because they’re happy.

Others smile because they’ve become experts at hiding the pain.

Behind the Smile came from thinking about how easy it is, to assume someone is doing well simply because they look as though they are. A smile can become armour. A way of getting through the day without answering difficult questions. Sometimes it’s easier to say, “I’m fine,” than to explain everything that’s falling apart inside.

The poem isn’t about one particular woman.

It’s about anyone who keeps going while carrying invisible battles. The person who turns up for work. The friend who always makes everyone laugh. The parent who keeps everything together for everyone else. The neighbour who smiles every morning, even though they’re barely holding on.

We often judge people by what we can see.

But the hardest struggles are usually the ones hidden from view.

One line that captures the heart of the poem is:

“Behind the smile she’s on her knees,

Fighting battles no one sees.”

That isn’t just poetry.

For many people, it’s reality.

Perhaps the hardest truth isn’t that people hide behind a smile.

It’s that sometimes people don’t want to know what’s behind it.

Not because they’re cruel, but because they’re buried in their own lives, their own worries, their own responsibilities. Life moves quickly, and many people are simply trying to make it through their own day.

To me, that’s the saddest thing to acknowledge and come to terms with.

Not everyone will stop to ask the second question.

Not everyone will wait for the honest answer.

That’s why kindness matters so much.

A few moments of genuine care, a conversation, or simply noticing that someone doesn’t seem themselves can mean more than we’ll ever know.

I’ve learnt that the strongest-looking people are not always the strongest, because life has been kind to them. Often, they’re strong because they’ve had no other choice.

If this poem encourages just one person to ask, “How are you, really?” or reminds someone that they don’t have to hide behind a smile forever, then it has done what I hoped it would.

Sometimes, the brightest smile in the room is the one carrying the heaviest heart.

Read the full poem here

Listen to the poem in Spoken-word on YouTube

Thank you for reading

Your DislexicPoet 🖤