The Wednesday Poem

Love

I have started
telling more people
that I love them.

Not random strangers –
although, who knows?
I put no boundaries on my
capacity for love.

I am telling my friends,
the words spilling from my lips
or my fingertips.

I love you.
Over and over, either as a
sign off
or simply by itself.

I love you.
I’m not shouting it
from the rooftops.
It’s quiet. Sincere. Vulnerable.

I love you.
I say it to my daughter
and she says it back
and I say ‘No, I REALLY love you’
and she says it back
and I say ‘You don’t understand
I REALLY REALLY love you’
and she laughs and says it back
and we keep going until
her voice fades and she gets in her car
and Triple J blares and wipes
my words from her mind.

And I realise that adding more words
doesn’t make my love any deeper,
it simply makes me feel desperate
for my love to be known.

So I revert to the classic, simplest form.
The words we crave as humans,
in the best and worst of our times.
The words that are a gift to both
giver and receiver.

I love you.
How many people
can you tell, today?

Amanda Williams

Amanda Williams spends her days teaching yoga from her garden studio in East Fremantle, and the stories that are shared after each class are proof that truth is stranger than fiction. She writes from the heart, and her first manuscript was longlisted for the 2024 Hungerford Award. When not on her yoga mat or writing she loves to spend time hiking and immersed in nature. For more information about Amanda, go to www.amandayoga.com.au.