I celebrate and

embrace you

for the essence

of your soul.

The way you hold

your words into

the light;

fearless and honest

but never too easy to decipher-

you are a breathtaking

maze to fathom

despite your openness

to the world

and though vulnerability be

sometimes misplaced,

you turn into

something worth

justifying the demise

for-

creator of all

tragically beautiful

stories in fiction.

You are beauty

before, during,

and after,

but there is no after

for you are also

endless,

infinite,

and beyond what anyone

can grasp.

Believe it for it is nothing

but the truth

I pledge on the grave

of Aphrodite and Athena:

you are beauty beyond

your eyes,

your skin,

your lips,

and your gaze.

You are beauty in words

and in thoughts

the way you treasure

art, people, and prose

and how you make a home

out of the storms;

how you cut yourself but

never let any bullet

take you down,

the way you bathe yourself

with cold water while yearning

for warmth

but still never giving the heart too

fast,

too easily to anyone.

You-

who suffocate herself to sleep

on the longest nights.

You-

who thinks she’s a forest pixie

and ancient goddess in one.

On some days you‘re well aware that

you’re above everyone else

but you-

you did nothing but deprive yourself

of comfort and assurance;

jumping from one self-sabotage

to the next.

I look at you in the eyes

and even if the scars and tears are

what make up the surface,

I can’t help but still see the soul within

that speaks volume of

You.

You.

You.

I celebrate and

embrace you

for the essence

of your soul.

You’re unlike any other,

you’re not just for show,

the prettiest flowers that which

you hold forever knew.