Jackal In Hide Poem by Daleen Enslinstrydom

Taking on a different persona
like a jackal in the hen’s coop
I perfected this kind of hiding
when I was only just a child

and I had too much responsibility
and had to act as a mother
long before my time.

I got up early in the morning
to do all of my chores
and to get my smaller brothers and sisters
ready for school

but when it was my turn
to get ready for school,
I changed back
into the skin of a child

and I untangled the curlers in my hair
and made high ponytails
with the long curly hair

and I only possessed one school uniform
but it was ironed and tidy
and my shirt and socks
was always washed pure white

and I walked behind them
until they got to school
and that was when my responsibilities
ended for that part of the day

and I became somebody else
and did not know them at all
as I was of a higher class
and I was the teacher’s pet
and my grades was the highest
in the class
and I studied to be noticed

but at home everything
was falling apart
and I experienced this
in every inch of my being

and at school I could hide
in plain sight
and for a few hours
could become somebody else
and fit in and did matter
and could play and laugh
and the problems at home
could stay there for a while.