Gratitude

Gratitude is noticing
Not everyone wants to be noticed
But I do notice
The kindness
The hurt
The struggle
Yours so much like mine

Gratitude when voiced
becomes courage
Not everyone wants to hear that voice
But that voice longs to come forth
From years of silence
Moments lost forever
To those who never knew

When not in gratitude
I find instead grief
For a voice stifled
For kindness not appreciated
For hurt not acknowledged
For the struggle unshared
Your relief is not mine

Gratitude is not the opposite
Of just being
Or perhaps I cannot just be
To both notice and be
Let it become unspoken
That may be the truest test
Of a grateful friend