Remembrance

A whisper so soft escapes trembling lips

the tearful face saddened by years of wear

and yet she stands on the mountain cliff,

her courage discernible in the biting air.

Two years' worth of memories control her,

she's drowning inside their hold

the wind picks up and whips around her

threatening to push her down below

Those scattered shards that were her heart are lost

her mind shadowed by grief and desolation

her soul, she knows, has withered away

the pieces snatched by the cruel hands of expectation.

She remembers those remarks as clear as day;

she can trace the burning trail they leave in their wake

they're etched in her brain no matter how hard she tries

to make them go away.

A sob forces its way past her lips

her eyes glisten with unshed tears

she watches the towns, the people before her

watching her

and yet, her voice doesn't waver

"I'm letting go", she says to the morning air

and ever so slowly, those pieces knit together

she doesn't glance at the judging stares,

because she's letting go altogether.