The aches in her palms soaked through her skin
and dripped down her bones like paint
staining a path of midnight roses that she could not erase
She wondered if it might ever stop
if this winding river might one day dry and let her breathe in clean air
instead of the anchors that ripped through her throat and weighed down her chest
She waited patiently with her bouquet of faith hoping that it might end
but nothing ceased and the rivers became oceans
and one day as her heart gazed into oblivion
it was led away by ghosts full of promises
until her vision became clear and clarity held her weary hands
and let her see that the solace she longed for was already beneath her fingertips
she just needed to open her sombre heart
and no one
not even faith
could do that for her
only she was
capable