she said

I Love You

as i emptied my wallet
i had never told a stranger

I Love You

but in that moment
i felt what Love was
i felt what Love is

we
are an unbroken cycle
of broken people
we are all
screaming for something
Loving someone
missing somewhere

i saw her dog in the back seat
"society just isnt that kind."
the church secretary said
and I knew it was so
I knew because I had seen
the pain on childrens faces before
when an abuser cost them not only their homes, their safety
but their family
shelter basements with dogs in crates
desperately trying to keep families

together

she told me she had a pen
her journal was filled with bible verses

I Love You

she said as i scribbled down the numbers
knowing her chances
but trying desperately myself to keep a family

together

I Love You too
i told her as I walked away
i said
thank you
for letting me help you
and she sat in her car and cried
and i felt what Love was
i felt what Love is

i went to the dollar store for coffee and cigarettes
and I found instead
a new clarity
a new perspective of Love
of what Love was
of what Love is