as a youth, he learned the art of separation
it was the only way to survive the pain
that burned his flesh and drowned his mind

he put his heart out of reach
placing it in a tin can - his only possession

the can became battered, dented
but his heart remained untouched

he had a gift, which he bent into a barbed wire fence
to rip apart those who tried to jump over

he surrounded himself with people
who were content with looking through the holes in the fence
who didn’t need access to his heart to love him

but then he met a man
who didn’t try to jump the fence like the others

by example, this man showed him how to open fences
this man handed him vulnerability, so he could see what it looked like

holding it for the first time, he noticed that vulnerability
had the same color, same shape, same feel
as love

in fact, he realized, this complete vulnerability
was love

he had never seen it in such perfect form
bold, deep, secure

with the knowledge that such love existed
he allowed himself a feeling he had always guarded against -
hope

he used this hope to pry open the tin can in his chest
where he found a raw, shapeless lump

so he set off, vulnerable written on his chest,
in pursuit of hands that could mold his heart