If you desire to measure how far you have trekked,
across meadows and deserts of emotion,
and oceans of storm-filled nights,
look back toward the horizon.
For there remains, soaked in your tears,
the crumbling bones of all your relationships.
The harmful sort, which once upon a time
took hungry bites out of your tender soul.
Now, those wounds are merely a rank mound
of sodden filth far behind, compelling your steps.
Barely noticeable on the landscape of your voyage,
vague carnage silhouetted against the iridescent moon,
her bluish-silvery pallor casting light up on your footpath.
Her voice, if she had one, would sing gently to you now,
a single hopeful word, encouraging you, willing you;
“Onwards”.
Photo by Danie Franco on Unsplash
Judith Staff
Judith Staff’s background is in teaching and early years education. She still teaches occasionally, though now her main focus is in child welfare and safeguarding children. Her work includes delivering training, presenting at conferences, and engaging in collaborative projects with schools around child abuse awareness and sexual violence prevention. She enjoys writing blogs and poetry on topics she feels passionate about. Judith loves running, gym classes and karate. She is married to an art lecturer and they live in Northamptonshire, England with their three free-spirited children, a 12- year-old son, and daughters aged 11 and 9.
