And because the word “tousled”
does not do justice
to the wild unfettered red of his hair,
let me say this:
when he said it was better
to be a pessimist
because then you don’t get hurt,
I smiled at him with courage,
not bravado
or false cheeriness,
and said
that optimists
can roll with the pain
and open up to letting in
so much more.