Tristan Robert Lange
Echoes of Inevitability
Why is it we must lose
The ones we love?
We are born into this world
Together.
Even if brief,
That togetherness
Is intricately woven into
Who we are.
From birth
To death,
We are yearning for connection,
Striving to be seen,
To be heard,
To be known,
To be loved.
To belong.
To be.
To be in a sea of beings,
To float along
Weightless
In saline certainty,
The comfort of conformity
Crystalizing until
We lose ourselves
To avoid losing others.
And yet what have we saved?
What gain is there
In all of this loss?
What have we gathered up
In this forest of fragile feelings?
The broken sticks
And moldy leaves waft
Up the nose
Triggering mildew memories.
What have we gained,
Losing ourselves
To gain acceptance?
We are invalidated
Through our search for validation.
The ones who love us do,
The ones who don’t won’t
The haters will hate,
And lovers will stay the day;
But, in the end,
Both will leave us
Irrevocably
Alone.
As will we, one day,
Leave—
Taking flight—
The cold Arctic wind
Thrilling, chilling, and killing
The life we’ve stored away.
We are indeed born into this world
Together.
And yet, many are alone.
Why is it that we must lose
The ones we love?
© 2025 Tristan Robert Lange. All rights reserved.