Still Waters

We have the image wrong.

Still waters, we say. And we picture the quiet one. The person who holds back, who doesn't fill a room, who gives little away. We mean it kindly. There is more there than meets the eye.

But depth has no dress code.

Some of the most unreadable people you will ever meet are also the loudest in the room. The golden kaftan. The big laugh. The three hours of nonsense that leave you warm and full and certain you know them completely.

You know one true thing. Completely.

There is another true thing underneath. Also complete.

Not hidden. Not withheld. Not everything needs to surface to be real.

Because the water runs deep, the shiny things get to be shiny without apology. Loud without guilt. The golden kaftan worn without a second thought.

Still waters don't look still from the outside.

Sometimes they look like the loudest person in the room.