A Soft Place to Land

a year has passed and only

now can i begin to process that

night with you in the emergency room.

i tried to crack dad jokes, tried

very hard to act like

everything was normal. like i wasn't

reeling in fear, terrified about what you had tried to do.

scared for a next time when i might find you too late.

all i wanted was to be strong for you, to tell you it's okay.

resilience does not require you to go it alone, or to never falter, i say.

you'll always have, in these arms, a soft place to land.