It’s not the bite in your pride
when the rejection is nearing
that you are really fearing

It is not the hope that died
while heartbreak was jeering
that built the guard you’re wearing

It is the invasion of your Inside,
the vulnerability in sharing,
the agony, the pain, of caring

Deep within is where you hide,
finding strength, slowly preparing,
because love is for the daring.

Che Chidi Chukwumerije
Poems from the inner river