You Bring Out the Bravery in Me, after Sandra Cisneros

You bring out the bravery in me.

The deep belly laughter over the phone, gusto and charm.

The certainty in a hope unseen.

The yes I can, it’s my chance.

The belief in greater things. And not just on Sunday.

You are the one that builds me up, encourages me.

Bring you a smile if that were all I could do to say thank you.

Anytime. Anytime.

Because.

You bring out the holy spill of truth in me.

The there will be better days than this,

The love of yellow light,

The I don’t care about what they say.

The go get ’em tiger,

The fierce determination to overcome,

The fact that I matter too in me.

The trust in letting go in me.

The spontaneity of 2am pancakes,

The art of worship and the living of drama,

The appreciation of a good four-letter word in me.

The drive to take another step up the mountain,

The curiosity to explore even further what it means to be alive,

You bring out the fight in me.

The dream of an orange sky apocalypse survived,

The dare to breathe again,

The bipolar queen of August in me.

The cowgirl, the teacher, the confidant,

The daughter of a football fan in me.

Dear friend, my happy brother,

I am the dimension between time and space that asks to be heard,

that says out loud I have a voice.

I say you are unlike any other, completely unique.

I want to hear you sing alone.

I want to see you kiss your mother on the cheek.

I want to dismiss all my day and night terrors, knives and demons,

and build model airplanes with you instead. Because.

You bring out the bravery in me, whether or not you try.