I walked the road with blistered feet, Through winters sharp and long, I gave my youth to endless work, And swore my hands were strong. The nights were filled with candle smoke, My days with ceaseless toil, I carved my hopes in iron stone, And bled into the soil. O Past, you forged me hard as steel, You taught me not to bend— Through storms I rose, through fire I stood, And found my crown at end. --- Yet in the chase I turned aside The hearts that once were near, I silenced voices calling me, Too busy to hear. The one who loved me walked away, My friends grew faint and few, I traded laughter, warmth, and trust For dreams I thought were true. O Past, you forged me sharp as stone, But stripped my life of song— The hands that should have clapped for me Are gone, and gone too long. --- Now riches weigh upon my desk, The prize I begged to claim, Yet when I lift it to the sky No echo speaks my name. The banquet hall is wide and bare, The wine untouched, grown cold, I find no eyes to meet my own, No arms that I can hold. O Past, I praise your iron ways, Yet curse what they have cost— For all I gained is hollow gold, And all I loved is lost.