My heart is
not broken
or beaten.
My heart is not
bruised or cracked.
My heart takes
blow after blow
and reveals not
a single dent nor
crater.

It has experienced
hurt, it has known
pain.
My heart's best friend
is disappointment
and sisters with
devastation.

She absorbs
all of the bad and feels
it in every inch of her being.
But instead of breaking
down, falling
apart, growing
weary,
she grows stronger
fortified by all
the times she was wronged.

Do not confuse reinforcement
with steel, while they can be
synonymous.
She is not hardened,
her essence remains
tender,
open to the blow after blow,
welcoming in the bad
with the good, the ugly
with the beautiful, the ache
with the perfect joy that only
stems from housing
the Spirit.