…the desolation has only just begun

Castaway stars swim
in the low stream
of darkness
a distant throbbing
resonates
across the still surface
of the ocean

where waves
begin to form
tentative and unshapen
their fledgling efforts
yet unable
to lift the weight
of the shadowed waters

here on this isolated shore
amidst the songs
of the winter night
soft veils of moonlight fall
upon the already pale trees

leafless and trembling
their silhouettes
now occupy the sky
empty and reaching
for a truth they are seeking
perhaps the answer
to their most pressing question

in this season of sighs
there will be no timely reply
for the desolation
has only just begun
as they stand upon the edge
in between sky and sea
it falls to them to oversee

the final demise of the leaves
and the sorrowful flight
of the last petals
before winter reclaims 
its domain
the peace 
and the harmony 
of death
will not be gifted to them

their emptiness 
will soon be complete
their arms heavy
with the weight of loss
and the cold blankets of snow
will transform the terrain
painting them anew
until their pain 
begins again

© Ann Bagnall