Paper Tigers

I say, love will come to you.
Hoping just because I spoke the words
that they're true,
as if I've offered up a crystal ball
to look through:
where there's now one, there will be two.

-Indigo Girls "Love Will Come to You"

If there were words that could function as shields, I'd find them and shield her. If there were words that could act as medicine, I'd administer them and heal her. I'd champion and protect her, bolster and defend her, go into battle armed solely with poetry and praise.

If only there were words that could do all of that.

Because there aren't, my words are mere paper tigers, sent with a wish that they nestle on her desk among her scribblings and cover her in silken velvet to calm the predator of pain inside her. I wish her love. I wish her hope. I wish her the warmth of arms enveloping her until the morning light awakens her with a kiss to the lovely forehead which holds her brilliant mind.

In this world, this spanking world, I neglectfully avoid in-depth discussions of love and friendship, two things far more valuable than the flush of pink cheeks. Why do I do that? Perhaps because mere words do not do them justice; they do not convey all that I am thankful for. I am thankful for her.

And I wish, I wish...but I have stopped wishing, so it is more a statement of fact without knowledge of how or when.

Love will come. I am certain. It will come.