When anonymous we write We never need to feel contrite. We can poke and jab and jeer Without remorse and without fear. We can pick on anyone And need not say it was in fun. We can wreck another’s life Without a thought of our own strife. Yes, our barbs can hurt and sting Yet there will be no reckoning. But ought we to think of one another As our sister, as our brother. For kind words are quite the same Whether we decide to leave a name. They always lift the spirits high Regardless who the words are by. Though it might seem quite absurd To leave people with a kind word Whether they know that it was you It is the thing you ought to do. So when anonymous I write I do not need to feel contrite For I will offer my kind words Even if it might seem absurd. For kindness costs me not a thing But to the other it might bring A ray of sunshine through the gloom A fragrant blossom out of doom. A few kind words might make you sing Or lift you up on eagle’s wing. So please think of another’s plight When anonymous you write.

I keep hiding I keep in the dark Wanting you to find my secret You keep trying But you never figure it out I send you notes everyday Yet you never notice my writing That it is the same as mine Im scared to tell you Your popular And im not Yet I know you like me But im scared So I will just say I am anonymous On the note that i give you every day

You do not know me No one really does But you know of me I wright you letters Notes with well wishes I send you gifts Like flowers and candy I never reveal my name It’s better that way Have you fingered me out Well I’ll tell you I am Anonymous

Dark glyphs on a glowing slab, ethereal as a ghost. The whole night begins to unwrap, a bit on every post.

I’m here but I’m not You think of me a lot But I never show my face Not at the same place I use paper and pen And talk to you from my den No one’s knows who spoke the words But only the melody matters when it’s the birds I can make a change from the shadows And change all these cities to meadows If you listen to what I say There’s hope for another day Voice is what matters When everything scatters Some may think your lying But at least your trying

Rings of coffee decorate the book of blue Scribbles in its guts, rantings Instructions on how to survive Ink stains on my fingertips Stark raving madness in their eyes The door swings open And a seat is pulled up for the broken: Shards of whiskey tumbled stones Bones coated in barleycorn syrup— The door swings shut, never locked Bears lap the honey from the runaway Never mindful about not leaving teeth marks More scars, more madness, less honey For the Grace of Bob there goes I

I don’t know your name You always hide your face But I want to know the you The face behind the mask I look at you each day But you never meet my eyes You always run away And never look on back I want to see your face That you will trust me Even if it’s not today That it will be someday I want to learn the real you Hidden beneath the mask The one that can show a face And look me in the eye

In a world of social media, Where we can be who we want to be, The most dangerous disguise, I find, Is the mask of anonymity. To be a faceless person, Behind an avatar and handle, Is to feel untouchable, While others lives they dismantle. Someone you may pass, As you’re walking down the street, May be the same person on the web, Who makes you feel incomplete. It’s awful when a total stranger, Types vitriol to send, But imagine if the deepest cuts, Came from your closest friend. But believe me when I tell you, This anonymity has its bounds, The people who try to hurt you, Can only do so if allowed. Unknown faces of the net, Can light a rage with just a spark, But they can’t do much to harm you, If you leave them shouting in the dark.

How often Do we say That weird word Anonymous We say it When we don’t know who sent The love letter From anonymous It is the name we give ourselves When we don’t want To be found out Submitted anonymously The variation of the word Meaning not special Not unique, not outstanding, not individual The anonymity The scary word we use so often Often we say it without purpose But this word is a translation of another scary word Normal or not important

People are so so comfortable In their anonymity There is no fear of judgement When you hide behind a mask A screen You’re brave Because you don’t have to face The face on the other side of that screen Anonymity gives people dumb courage To be bold in ways That in person would be mean But who cares It’s just a little insipid picture A stranger hidden behind a profile Not a real human being Such is the anonymity of the screen