Coming out of the Closet

I’ve heard the phrase “coming out of the closet” enough times with reference to people who are gay or lesbian. But I never thought it could be applied to others as well. I recently saw a TED talk by Ash Beckham, and it made me realize something.

We all have closets

We all have secrets

That we want to share

But are afraid to

Our fears

Our hopes

Our lives

But for some reason or the other

We don’t

We prefer to hide

Not because it’s better

But because it’s safer

But safer isn’t better

Nor is it always easier

Because in the long run

We want to be heard

We want to be seen

To be ourselves

To not pretend

To not apologize

To just be

We can spend

Our entire lives

Behind those doors

Peeping through a keyhole

Hiding

Pretending

Alone

Stifled

When what we really want

Is to breathe

Freely

To walk

Confidently

To live

The way we are

But I get it

Those doors are too heavy

It’s not easy

To push them from inside

So let me help you

Let me pull

From the other end

While you push

From inside

Whenever you’re ready

If you’re ready

Let’s do it now

On the count of three

Just this once

Open that door

Step out of the darkness

Show me who you really are

The face behind the mask

The hope behind the eyes

The person behind the closet

And just this once

Don’t care about the voices

Don’t care how they react

It doesn’t matter

Whether you’re met

By condescension or praise

By another mask or face

What matters

Is that you’re out

Is that you’re free

Because

As she said

Rightly so

A closet

Is no place for a person

To truly live