Broken-glass Hearts

Our hearts are made to dazzle.
They climb and fall and burn and sparkle,
like an elaborate light show
a saga told through tiny sparks.

When we learn we can be burned
We subdue ourselves until we barely simmer.
A heat re-directed inwards.

We drink fake diamonds and get broken-glass
Hearts, just to kill what makes us raw.
Fire can’t be polished, but ash can be preserved
So we burn ourselves out
Chasing perfection and
Finding only inhumanity.

Authenticity is a double
Edged sword but I would
Rather get my heart broken
As my self than as a
Silk-covered shell.

You can’t make people
Love you so sanding
Yourself into an ideal is
Just pain for the sake of pain

Being told you are too much
Is like squeezing lime juice in your eyes
But sink your feet into the earth
And hold yourself oak-tree still
And say “you’re right, so what”?
And let yourself hurt, be painfully
Human, see the world through
vibrant eyes. Love and listen
And hope and dream, burn through this broken glass heart.