from hero to human

you never want to meet your heroes, they say
because unlike in Marvel films
you lose your taste of love for them.

because sometimes their dark shirts are marked with that faint white
paintbrush from a deoderant stick
and sometimes their unshaven stubble is like a cheese grater
rather than some manly coming-of-age appeal

because sometimes their tongues trip
and the words fall out like thrown dice
and other times they say nothing and speak in silent, unwanted exhales

because sometimes they hold you
with their oatmeal hands
and whisper into the cliffs of your collarbones
and all the time you're thinking,
"how did this person become so human to me?"