attitude

Before perception,
there is an attitude.
The other angle of the mind.

The way we make our stand
before anything happens.
That angle decides
what we are willing to meet,
and what we turn from
before knowing why.

Attitude is not loud.
It is learned.
Layered quietly
through memory, temperament,
what once worked,
what once hurt.

We call it personality,
belief, value, and instinct.
But really,
it is readiness.

A leaning forward
or back.

Attitude shapes
how much space we give a moment
to speak.

And sometimes,
without noticing,
it becomes the gate
long before the truth arrives.

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