Cracking the Shell

Hard

I try to build my walls,

Bricks and stones,

Tales and thoughts.

Hard

I toil to make them hold.

Strong on the outside,

To conceal the child within,

The fairy from a dark realm,

A pearl from humanity…

The world

Rages with its arrows,

Spears and swords,

Cracking my shell,

And hard, 

I toil to repair it,

To heal the wounds.

But no matter how hard I try

The shell keeps cracking,

For the toughest cracks

Are those that come from within!