it’s been one day
since i stopped crying
one whole day since
i stopped spilling my feelings
all over the damn place
tripping myself and
everyone around me
i spent last week trapped
in a saltwater room
hostage to a thousand
aches and people
eyes filling whenever
i melted into myself
every moment i was on display
i felt like saccharine brittle
so it was almost a relief
when i shattered spectacularly
like a chandelier
free now of obligation
i’ve been furiously
drinking wisdom
drawn as always
to what i lack
i am learning love
by reading about it
studying for it like a test
i’m afraid to fail
painfully aware
no amount of knowledge
will save me from grief
the natural inheritance of loss
yet also certain
i will not drown
in an endless swell
of anguish
i have given myself
the gift of perspective
and it is one
that will keep on giving