The Love You Seek

I hear your prayers.
I hear your cries in the night,
your whispered questions,
"Where is he?"
"Why am I alone?"
"Will love ever find me?"

I hear your longing,
your ache to be seen,
held,
chosen.

But I also see your fear.

I see how you flinch at the thought of trusting,
how you build walls instead of bridges,
how you say you want love,
but do not let it near.

You ask where he is.
But tell me,
when he comes, will you let him in?
Or will you judge him before he speaks,
weigh him against the wounds of your past,
see him not for who he is,
but for who has hurt you before?

Man is made with the same longing as you.
To love, to serve, to protect, to build.
Yet you have learned to doubt him.
To question his intentions.
To expect his failure before he even tries.

Do you not see?
This judgment, this fear,
it is the very thing that keeps love away.

Not all men are what you have known.
Not all men are careless.
Not all men betray.

But the ones who would love you truly,
the ones who would stand beside you,
the ones who would cherish what you offer,
they will not fight through your walls.

They will not prove themselves against ghosts.
They will not beg to be trusted.

It is you who must choose to trust again.
Not blindly.
Not foolishly.
But bravely.

Heal your heart, my love.
Not for him,
but for yourself.

So that when he comes,
you can see him clearly.
So that when he reaches for you,
you do not pull away.
So that when love stands at your door,
you do not lock it out.

The love you seek
is waiting to be received.

But first,
you must be ready to receive it.