My Tender Heart

 My Tender Heart

I sit.
Soften my eyelids and close out the light.
I breathe.
Feel the breath moving my body, wave after wave.
It is there I find it easy to turn to

My tender heart
A loving embrace.
We haven’t seen each other in a while.
I’ve been lost. Distracted.

My tender heart welcomes me.
She holds me
while salty tears stream down my face.
I’ve come home.

My tender heart
does not blame
nor show anger or impatience.
My tender heart holds me with such love.
In the safety of her arms,
I reveal my fear, worry, sadness, grief, shame, confusion, and hurt.

My tender heart, silent
pulses,
rhythmic beats of a drum,
a frequency of love.
I flash back in time to the first beat of a drum,
in my mothers’ womb.
The day God breathed life into me.
His unconditional love
And His great purpose for me.

My tender heart
presses palms to my teary cheeks
gaze piercing into my eyes
my soul
and says
You are whole
Do not fear
Breathe this breath.
You are loved more than you know.

My tender heart
releases me back into my body,
my breath.
And I feel purified
Cleansing waters now dry on my cheeks
proof of where I have been.

My tender heart
beats,
breathes life back into me.

My tender heart.

-Sarah Cummins 1/3/2024