Fearing for them, I
Clustered them together,
Then cut them off
From others—
Cloistered them
As if they were nuns.
As if they could only
Stand a little suffering
And needed shielding.
Maybe the opposite’s
True—they long to be
Tested.
Maybe
Something inside them
Prowls the space I made,
Eager to leap forth
When hurt at last
Smashes open their cage.