Fragments of Cassandra

She wore no armor,  
no shadow, no disguise;
only wonder that lingered  
behind innocent eyes.

She loved without measure,  
without question or fear,  
believing forever  
was always sincere.

Her heart was a doorway,  
its lantern aglow,  
welcoming strangers  
she would hardly know.

Then kindness met cruelty.  
Hope met goodbye.  

She learned that even angels  
can whisper a lie.

So brick after brick,  
stone after stone,  
she built herself walls  
she now calls a home.

Now silence is safer.  
Distance is wise.  
She smiles with her lips,  
not always her eyes.

They call her cold-hearted.

If only they knew-
the frost on her skin  
grew from storms she walked through.

That woman is not gone.

She still lives inside,  
holding the warmth  
she no longer provides.

Love did not leave her.  
It learned restraint.

The heart stayed open; 
only the gate was chained.


Be'ahava,
The Mourning Bird