She Laughed

She Laughed 

She laughed when she told you

A laugh from lifetimes of joy

Bubbling over with sincerity 

She smiled when she told you

A smile that ceased to fade

That lit up her eyes with its truth 

The smile made her carefree

The laugh made her bold 

And the secret she told you? 

That her heart had broken. 

She told you of little wounds

Of her perpetual forgiveness  

Of the wrong and the reveal 

The bitter truth of reckoning 

With her own fragility and

Her life as the woman she belittled 

She dismissed her bravery said

Her dying heart forced her fight 

Embarrassed of having lost herself

She saw weakness that allowed scars 

Assumed the world would see the same 

So recoiling from pity and judgement

And armed with a laugh and a smile 

She told you her heart had broken 

And hoped you would not see.