By CAMERON DIIORIO
Staff Writer

I wrap the sweater around me,
taking in the view.
There are mountains stretched for miles,
and miles and miles and miles,
and my heart is empty.
I lie on the rock that seems to sit
on the setting sun.
I memorize every little house that belongs to
a happy family with a happy husband and wife and dog.
I think of my own less than happy family,
and my heart is empty.
I try to take a picture,
whip out my iPhone,
attempt a panorama,
but it does not capture the beauty
of my sunset climb’s success.
The cool breeze sends shivers down my lonely spine,
and my heart is empty.
As the sun sets,
the lights of the houses below me
flicker on like fireflies,
in the heat of a North Carolina summer.
I cry with the rain as the gloomy sky opens up for me,
and my heart is empty.
Water is falling all around me.
I throw the hood over my face
and toss my head back,
letting the rain cascade into my
open mouth as if to swallow myself,
right along with those raindrops,
and my heart is empty.
I look out at the city I love
as it is displayed before me in all its beauty.
I laugh at the simple things,
like rain at sunset,
and the mountain I alone have conquered,
and the city lights that stretch across the horizon.
And my heart is full.