to inflate, to pamper, to exaggerate,

to turn a blind eye to flaws,

to compliment blemishes,

to say untruths, to go wow at every decision

i make, even the horrid ones,

to not tell me of my blind spots,

till the car crashes.

to feign ignorance though you knew all along

where this path leads,

anything for a buck or two,

to suggest desire, motivation, need

though i am flat – already gone.

to go the whole nine yards

and a little more

because you are so totally into this

work, they cut the minimum pay didn’t they?

to deliver a bad product while telling me

it is the best ever!

to dig into your soul, to dig into mine,

it is just paper cash.

cold, heartless, dead,

a plastic smile that has genuine eyes,

it’s the eyes the boss say,

the customers look into the eyes … …

i did look,

it was dead, dead, dead

like me

giving a polite smile that it was the

best product ever – now your boss wouldn’t

say anything derogatory,

i’ve been at your position, a thousand times,

it is what i am each day: giving small chats

to strangers who simply want something.

nothing is amiss at all,

just skin perfect, just smiles perfect, just eyes perfect

because anything deeper

becomes uncomfortable, that’s really how close we are.

now that we have set the boundaries, the lines, the scores,

let’s do another round of dance!

i’m tired, you’re weary,

maybe this time we will walk past each

other without a hint of recognition.