sadness doesn’t knock
it seeps
through songs you weren’t ready to hear
through smiles that almost feel real
through the long pauses
between your name and meaning

it lives
in the breath after someone asks
“how are you?”
and you lie
because honesty takes too long to explain

some days, sadness is a fog
you learn to walk through
not escape
just navigate
with hands outstretched
and hope in your pocket
even if you never take it out

it does not mean you're failing
it does not mean you're weak
it means you are still soft
in a world that taught you
to be numb

it means you still care
even when you say you don't
even when you pretend you’re fine

sadness is not the absence of light
it’s proof the light once lived there
a shadow cast
only because something once burned
bright enough to leave a mark

so sit with it
don’t fix it
don’t shame it
don’t rush it away

this, too, is part of the becoming
this, too, is sacred

sadness is a season
not a sentence
and you, love
are still growing through it