🎙 Podcast Episode Description
This short literary podcast features a reading of my poem Where Do I Begin to See the Start of You, written in memory of my father. Misunderstood throughout his life, he grew up in foster care, was later sent to borstal, and carried hidden struggles that today I recognise as signs of undiagnosed autism.
The poem reflects on a boy who smiled through sorrow, masked his true self, and was judged harshly by a world that never understood him. Looking back now, with a modern understanding of autism and neurodiversity, I honour the beauty of his mind and the resilience of his spirit.
This is both a personal elegy and a wider reminder: how many lives have been marked by silence, masks, and misunderstanding — when what was needed was acceptance, compassion, and pride.
Where do I begin to see the start of you
When did you become the person that I knew
A boy in troubled times
So sad behind the smiles
Whatever did they do
to rob the soul of you?
What life is life without its pride
without the pleasure of the ride?
And what they saw you couldn't hide
the truth of you so much maligned
If you were born today
Then they would understand
A life of masks betrays
The beauty of the mind
©2025 Sarnia de la Maré
#LiteraryPodcast #PoetryReading #AutismAwareness #Neurodiversity #FamilyStories #MemoirPoem #PodcastPoetry #ShortPoem #AutismInHistory #NeurodiverseVoices #HiddenHistories
“Until next time, may we honour the hidden stories — and see the beauty of every mind.”
