I never wrote back. (I waited for silence to speak for me.) The years scattered like dry leaves. (I counted them, one by one, in the dark.) I should have come sooner. (I locked the door and swallowed the key.) You gave me your voice. (I buried mine under stone.) I carried your kindness like a wound. (It burned brighter than my pride.) The nights were long. (I heard you in the walls.) I could have been gentler. (I could have stayed.) Forgive the hunger I left behind. (And the cold I could not name.) I am still walking toward you. (But the road bends, and bends again.) If you never answer, I will understand. I should have come sooner. I could have been gentler. You gave me your voice. I carried your kindness like a wound.
