People Watching

Walking around through life today
Looking for a life that brings meaning
I'm watching people and wondering
Why does it seem we're all play acting

I'm led to believe it's all a game
Dressed up images and plastic smiles
A mask of confidence to brave the world
Finding fulfillment in the emptiness

Returning home to a small cocoon
Private inner world to create sanity
Obsessed with pets and mindless TV
Living vicariously dreams of adventure

Hiding away behind the confident mask
They're pretending to be fully alive
But I see a fear behind their eyes
When I give them my smile of freedom

What are they hiding, what's the fear
That keeps them living smaller lives
Keeping them down and all alone
Communities cracked from disconnect

In the city so big pockets collapse
As people move offline from reality
Virtual communities and relationships
Sitting alone in front of their computer

There is nobody warm and caring
To laugh and cry in complete humility
Cynical existence replaced authenticity
Hidden and protected behind the screen

Who am I now, what is missing
The void inside screams all the while
To feel another presence connected deeply
To know I am here and really alive

**** this is just an observation of conversations and relationships to which I've been privy.