Her scorched, tainted heart

She used to be the girl who would
Cry at every sad movie
Laugh at the pettiest of jokes,
And love at simple kindness
Until one day, she realised that
Everything she held dear was never reality
But merely an illusion.

Now she never treads on water
Pondering on days’ worth of thoughts–
She will dive headfirst into the ocean
Even with shackles ’round her ankles
And anchors at her feet.
The wrought iron gates of her soul
Have now hardened to steel,
For she no longer bears fragility
But a scorched, tainted heart.

— An anonymous escape from life

***

Art by Henn Kim