the moment that i lost him/i threw my belongings into my backpack/grabbed my hiking boots, and headed/to the great appalachian trail/where each step i took/over the dusty earth/reminded me/of growing up//i heard my dad/in my best memories/speaking/breathing/as he walked tall beside me/and constantly i felt/the raggedness of grief//but the trees/the mountains/even the pouring rain/patched my open wound/and kept me from bleeding out//and each night/i’d glance up at the stars/flipping the silver dollar coin he gave me/and slapping it down on my hand/to decide my fate//heads/stay the night//tails/keep climbing
