Secret Library

by Emma Freeman

I can tell by looking in your eyes

and by the way you hold yourself

that there is deep 

deep

deep

 inside you

a dimly lit secret library 

full of stories bound to your heart

well worn stories you have shared many times

and others you’ve never told anyone

kept safely in locked cabinets out of view

there are light filled stories and stories full of darkness

joyful stories and ones full of sadness and pain 

there are silly stories and adventurous stories

sweet stories and stories full of regret

tentative stories and bold stories

loud stories and stories full of silence

There are stacks upon stacks of them 

some piled on the floor

others that have fallen behind shelves

There are back rooms full of them

cold basements and dusty attics too

hundreds

thousands 

of stories held inside your sacred walls

I wish I could wander around with you there

slowly browsing your bookshelves 

discovering all of your subtle wisdom 

and tenderness held there

I want to find a cozy spot in a corner 

to sit together as you slowly flip to a page

take a deep breath 

and begin to read your heart out loud to me…