the fire gone now--
                                              too starved to burn anymore . . .
                                           a spark falters and fades--
                                            temporary, as such things always are . . .
                                              but this last ember
                                                 not wholly extinguished,
                                                   still lights a guiding shadow,
                                              peering into the darkest crevices
                                                of a soul's memories . . .