the thing about love is
that it breaks your heart
it shatters you into tiny little pieces,
leaves you doubled over in grief
just trying to catch your breath.
the thing about love is
is that you don’t see it coming
it’s suddenly there
its hands reaching down your throat
until it finds its home under your rib cage
nuzzled there next to your heart
filling a space you didn’t realize was empty.
the thing about love is
is that it can knock the air
out of your lungs, leave you so breathless
you forget you need to breathe
until you’re forced to come back up for air.
it tells you, “he is the one, she is the one,
damn, they are the one.”
the thing about love
that no one tells you about
is how much better it can make you:
when you’re sad and
your dad says, “it’s okay.”
when you feel alone and
your mom hugs you.
when you hate the world
and your brother makes you laugh
or your sister takes you to lunch,
no words between you.
when you want to give up
and your friends lift you back up
and hold you up until you feel
like you can breathe again
because what they don't
tell you about love
is that it is more than just
butterflies and firsts and
falling head over heels
but it is also,
laughter,
hugs,
warm food on a cold night,
music,
windows down on a fall day,
summer beach days.
that’s the thing about love:
it’s up to you
to feel it.