No Matter What

I see

 you are just like me

achingly wanting

achingly waiting

achingly yearning

to sprout, to bud, to blossom

into the whole, sacred essence

of you

I see little girl you 

who lost and never found

who wanted but never got

who saw but was seldom

Seen

I see ancient woman you

how deeply

she wants to be loved 

for her shadows as much as her light

how deeply

she wants to be embraced

for her wild

and her tender

I see

I am here

to remind you

that you no longer  

need to shrink in order to fit in

you no longer need to contain

what isn't containable

you no longer need to be

the convenient version of what you think

they want you to be

I see

I am here to invite you 

to lean the tenderness of you

into the tenderness of me

to promise

not to try to solve

or fix

or wish anything away

to promise

to love you

no matter what