Around the Bend

by Jessica Wheeler

Loop Poetry Contest Contest Winner

Around the bend, just feels so far-
Far from the place I stand today.
Today, I'll try again to move,
Move on from what I wished would stay.

Stay close, until I breathe or bear;
Bear with me now, I can't forget.
Forget the look of eyes that pierced,
Pierced holes that haven't healed just yet.

Yet, waiting by the bend, behind-
Behind the haze, there's something
more.
More time to live, to love beyond,
Beyond all I have loved before.

Before my eyes, once cold and still,
Still shadows shift, and sun seeps in.
In empty arms, once frail but free,
Free now to find where I'll begin.

Begin to see the light in loss;
Loss is a knife that carves the space,
Space for the morning sun to pour,
Pour warmth into my cold embrace.

Embrace the ones still mine to hold;
Hold on to all that stands this ground.
Ground thoughts that chase the lost, and step-
Step to the bend life waits around.