Posted on November 24, 2025 by Jenn Zatopek

WHAT REMAINS

Grief howls like coyotes
in the nighttime sky of my heart,
whips through red canyons while
pinpricks of light in the dark astonish.

Did you know, friend,
how your love was wind
blowing fresh through my soul?
How I wailed at its passing,
as I trudged the path in darkness,
forgetting I was surrounded.

Old echos of hurt flooded my soul
broken harmonies of failed relationships
as I walked all night on that trail
carved by ancient waters of sorrow,
yours, mine, and all others,
and then–

Sunrise alights on red earth,
touches juniper and scrub oak,
and the wind, still blowing, frees me,
and I’m traveling to the stars,
the wind carrying all things needed,
and I laugh like a wild woman
as I dance across the sky–

I know the end of sorrow
isn’t grief or joy but a heart
fully open to receive.

Image / Caprock Canyons State Park in West Texas