What are we but relics
of time gone by
Where painful encounters
stay undenied
The wounds may scar over
but never heal
As memory is martyred
its blood congealed
New skin tries to cover
what sutures can’t hide
Each moment recovered
a falsehood decried
With strength built on pillars
of fortunes disdain
From deep in the shadows
—our essence remains
(Dreamsleep: January, 2023)