Don’t say you’re happy
when it’s raining inside,
and you tighten the corners of your mouth
into a grimace
that was meant to be a smile.
You are a challenge
for air, sun, and water.
The elements learn again
how to breathe with you.
Every moment of your attention,
held for a while,
counts more than
thousands of lanterns
released high into the sky.
Even if they shine beautifully above our heads,
it’s the warmth of your steps
that carves this planet.
Without you,
it wouldn’t be the same
as it is with you.
Only true love
and the touch of hands
count more
than being told it’s enough.
Don’t tell me you can
stand on one leg
your whole life.
Look for your steady land,
the terra incognita of your “what if.”
And then,
before you leave,
take it all in,
everything that shaped you:
the time in other people’s eyes,
the sunlit summer,
and the cold of winter.
And come back to yourself.