Victorious
Yet ruined
Stranded in
A place
Forlorn

Far from home
Entranced
Estranged
Where cultures
Clash

Ghosts of regret
Still calling
From scarring tracks
Past mistakes
Long since
Washed away
In rivulets
Of sorrow

Breath catches
Pulse quickens
Eyes widen
Revering
A vista
Inspiring
Wonder

Step beyond
Pierce the veil
Clarity
Serenity
Lucidity
Awaits

Virgin pages
Awaiting inspiration
In the very beginning
Let there be light

Don't wear your past
Like a stigma
That defines you
Carry it
Like a map
To remember
Where you came from

Knowing
Only fools and dreamers
Wish upon the stars
Tying fate
To fickle lights
I wonder
Which of these
Am I

Tragic are they
Who are so afraid
To self-express
They instead
Erase themselves
Without a trace
Forgetting
Who they are

Even
An eternity of love
Starts
With a
      Smile
And a
      Click

Shutting down
Strange reflections
Occupy
My overheated mind

Heatwaves
Freeze
Life

Seek
The quaint
Amidst
The mundane

There's no need
To fear the dark
The biggest lies
Bask in the light
Of their devoted
Hidden
In plain sight

Endless fields
Adrift
Disconnected beacons
Moving solitary
Locked on faded echoes
Of forgotten self
Shouting questions
Unwilling to listen
To anything
But answers they seek

Roughly a hundred days of battle
To end fifty months of war
At 39 million deaths
We payed with 2 million more
The cost of ending fear
Flooded the trenches
With blood and tears

Allow yourself
Lazy days
Obligation
Will still be there
Tomorrow

Unwavered
By indecision
Time persists

Not all
Who fail
Faltered

Like how the path
Out of the woods
May be obscured
Behind the shrubbery
A chance
To escape your worries
May appear
If you stop staring
At the trees

Let go
Your shame
Indulge in joy
Dare to play