Carrying Light, Holding Shadows

By Yutzil Virgen

--

I walk with both hands full–

one cradling a flame,

the other gripping darkness.

The fire burns,

a fragile warmth against the wind,

reminding me I am still alive.

The shadow pulls,

a heavy tether

to everything I've lost.

I am both the lantern

and the eclipse,

both the hope

and the wound.

To love me

is to hold both–

the light I offer,

the shadows I hide.

And still,

I keep walking

with both hands full.