vulnerability

the cracks in okay
begin to splinter
but i paint over them
hoping the colour
will cover the lack
or what i perceive a gap

chipper hellos
and reassuring smiles
are all i know
stuffing the silence
with curious questions
expressive sighs

afraid what the air
might reveal about me
while the cracks
quake and grow
absorbing the outside
more and more each day

until a simple "how are you"
is enough to unleash
a torrent i can't at first name
flowing forth with no control
but when that friend stays
sits and listens for a while

i begin to realize
it's the deepest of me saying
it's okay that you're not
someday soon, you will