Graves of Past.

The most beautiful words we pick to write
The eulogies of those that left us behind,
But what words can be picked for those still alive?
None fitting enough, though try as we might,
When memories buried at the back of our minds
Keep flooding back into the light.
We run out of bitter farewells to bid,
No love to spare when there’s none to give,
When all that we built comes crashing down,
Through fires we cleanse, through tears we rid,
False promises of ‘as long as we shall live,’
No kingdom left, nor is any crown.
We hold on until our arms give out,
Tirelessly fight until we bleed dry,
Mourn for the lost ’til left with no tears,
No more hope left, no voice to shout,
No shoulder to lean on to cry,
Nowhere to turn to but our darkest fears.
After all, what eulogy can you ever write
For those that chose to walk away?
All there’s left is a deep wound,
Scars from which will forever stay,
Never to be erased, try as we might,
We keep walking back to these graves.
Graves we’ll never leave flowers at,
Graves of memories that only hurt;
Why do we ever hold on to the dead?
Looking for answers we’ll never find,
We keep walking back to what was shared,
But now lies in empty graves instead.

~© Shubhangi Srinivasan.

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Featured Image by Sacre Bleu on Unsplash