…must be endured

I linger here in the desolate wilderness that is now my new reality
forever lost, your distant heart
slow beats still sounding in the otherwise silent void
your absence still casts a shadow in stark, dark silhouette
a contrast to my bright, white solitude
sorrow is circling like birds of prey, it is only a matter of time
hope, a fragile mirage, reflected in a false mirror
an illusion promising water
in the endless reaches of an infinite desert
and I am drowning in a shore without a sea
I can no longer hear your heart
a cold wind whispers a song of sorrow
slowly weaving a path through the leaves of unseen trees
walking between raindrops
something alights feather soft upon my skin
a perception of warmth that I cannot feel
a sudden lightness of being
under the watchful eyes of the ever distant stars
clouds are gathering in silent crowds
as the moon paints its masterpiece, heading towards midnight
everything hinges on this moment
the stark reality settles in my soul and I surrender to my grief
just as trees surrender their leaves in the sudden onslaught of fall
in the knowledge that winter must be endured
before spring can begin the healing
I surrender to the night, to the whispers calling to my heart
to the inevitable onslaught of memories
time can never heal my wounds nor ever erase the traces of you
your essence courses through my veins
for you will ever be a part of me
as the scent of flowers after heavy rains
unseen but forever lingering
in the unreachable caverns of my soul
©Ann Bagnall