Guarded Heart.

I’ve been here before,
In the space between love and loneliness,
Where the echoes of past heartbreaks
Resonate louder than the whispers of new beginnings.

I’ve stood on the edge of vulnerability,
Looking down at the possibility of love,
And wondered—
Do I dare dive in again?
Or do I stay on this ledge,
Safe from the storms but far from the sun?

You see, my heart’s been a battlefield,
Fought wars in the name of love,
And I’ve lost more battles than I’ve won.
Each scar tells a story,
Of trust given too freely,
Of love that faded like a forgotten song.

I crave love—
Real, raw, undeniable.
The kind that wraps around you,
That holds you close in the darkest of nights,
That feels like home even when the world is a mess.
But can I handle the weight of it?
Can I trust my heart to hold it without breaking?

I’ve watched others find it,
That one love that makes them glow.
I’ve seen their joy,
And I’ve wondered,
Why not me?
Is it that I’m too broken,
Too guarded,
Too afraid to let someone in?

I’ve built walls—
High, strong, impenetrable.
They keep the pain out,
But they also keep the love out.
I’ve been safe, yes,
But also empty,
Longing for the very thing I’m afraid to reach for.

I’ve had nights where loneliness clings to me like a second skin,
Where the silence is so loud it drowns out my thoughts.
I’ve stared at my reflection,
And asked the same question over and over—
Am I ready to love again?

I want to believe I am.
I want to think that there’s someone out there,
Someone patient, someone kind,
Who will see past the scars and the walls,
And touch the part of me that still believes in love.

But I’m scared—
Scared of the unknown,
Of the what-ifs and the maybes.
Scared that I’ll open my heart
Only to watch it break again.

Yet, there’s a voice inside me,
A small, quiet whisper,
That tells me to try,
To take that leap of faith,
To let go of the past and reach for the future.

So here I stand,
On the edge of love and fear,
Torn between the desire to hold on
And the need to let go.
But maybe, just maybe,
It’s time to trust that love can heal,
That it can be more than just pain and heartbreak.

Maybe it’s time to believe
That true love is worth the risk,
That it’s worth the scars and the tears,
Because at the end of the day,
It’s love that makes us whole.

So, I’ll take a breath,
And I’ll take that step,
One foot in front of the other,
Walking towards love,
With a guarded heart,
But a longing soul.
Hoping that this time,
This time,
Love will be the one that stays.

Walking Shadow Poetry Kenya.