I wish my words could fall like rain, Soft on your hands, not sharp with pain. But all I have are truths I’ve known— I’m tired, deep within my bone. Not tired in ways that rest can mend, But tired where days refuse to bend, Where every dawn feels carved from stone, And I must lift its weight alone. You’ve been my light when night was near, The steady warmth that calmed my fear. I love you for each whispered stay, When I was half a world away. But flames grow weak when winds won’t cease, And smoke is all that’s left of peace. It isn’t you who made me fade, But tides no anchor’s strength has stayed. I’m sorry that I turn and go, While you still shine, while you still know The hope I cannot seem to keep— It drifts away, it sinks too deep. If I had been the one you need, I’d plant my roots, I’d never leave. I hope you find a brighter sky, Where love’s not forced to fight to try. And may you, in some distant year, Forgive the ghost who loved you here. Goodbye, my love, my brightest flame, Though tides will wash away my name.