where,
o where do you keep your heart
my dear?

where is it contained?

in small and distant places?
fractured, scattered to the winds
and around the world?

is it in chests
of bone and sinew
beating alongside others
as mine is?

is it buried beneath this scabbed earth,
safe entombed in granite
and far from prying eyes…
away from pain…away from love
and numb with the cold?

can you hear it beat,
and if you can
is it a beat out of time
or in line with the grand chorus?

no matter love –
no matter where you keep your heart
be it near or be it far;
let it be in keeping with
the brilliance of who you are