You Are the Light Behind the Mask

The room is quiet now. The song has ended, the words have been spoken, and the sudden silence feels like an accusation.

You feel like a fraud because your hands are still raised while your heart feels heavy and far away. That gap between the performance and the person is where the darkness tries to convince you that you are alone.

But the light does not require your perfection to stay. It was there before the first note was sung, and it is here now in the quiet aftermath.

The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it. You do not have to manufacture a feeling to be held.

The light is not a reward for a good performance; it is the ground you are standing on. Even when you feel like nothing but smoke and mirrors, the truth remains.

You are not the mask you wore tonight. You are the light that sees through it.