The Quiet Gift

The moment begins small,

a curve at the edge of your mouth,

barely a thought,

yet it lands like sunlight

where I hadn’t realized I was cold.

It doesn’t ask for anything,

doesn’t bargain or insist.

It simply arrives,

untangling shadows with ease,

as if joy were the most natural language.

And in that instant,

the air feels lighter,

my chest expands,

and the heaviness I carried

slips from my grasp

without me even noticing.

But then;

something deeper settles in.

I realize it’s not just brightness you give.

It’s recognition.

The kind that tells me I belong here,

that my existence was seen

long before words could catch it.

A smile becomes more than expression,

it is bridge,

it is anchor,

it is the fragile proof

that love doesn’t need declarations

to change a life.

So when your lips rise again

and your gaze holds mine,

I know I’m receiving something vast,

a gift with no wrapping,

a treasure that leaves nothing wanting,

and I carry it,

quietly radiant,

long after you’ve turned away.