Where Love Heals

I used to feel
like I was standing
at the edge of something high—

calling out
to people
who never looked up

like if I was loud enough
visible enough
soft enough

someone would finally say

I see you

but they didn’t

and for a long time
I thought
that meant
I was invisible

I wasn’t

I was just
looking for recognition
in places
that couldn’t hold me

so I made myself smaller

quieter

easier to miss

and called it love

but love
was never something
I lost

it was something
I kept giving
to people
who didn’t know
what to do with it

and somewhere in that

I forgot

to give it
to myself

until now

because I see me

I see the way
I stayed

the way I tried

the way I kept loving
even when it hurt

and I don’t need
to shout anymore

I don’t need
to be found

because I am
already

here

JMS