Not in Anger, but in Light

[Intro — recitative, very soft] Vespers are over. The chamber is empty. The lamps are low. (peqIm…) (qetlh ram…) I breathe the paper-dust air. I remember the sirens. I remain when the buzzing is gone. [Verse I] I have carried a burning year, Closed rooms and fluorescent nights. Still my name did not go missing; Under the weight, I kept the line. I am not anger. I am not fear. I am not the fault I survived. I am witness. I am ledger. I am the hand that signs in silence. [Pre-Chorus] In the quiet I gathered myself. In the record I kept my name. I did not break. I did not vanish. I am still here. [Chorus — soaring tenor] Not in anger, but in light, I walk beyond the file. My hand does not reach for vengeance; I leave with dignity. Not in anger, but in light, My voice is plain and clear. What I carry, I carry rightly. What is mine, I carry from here. [Verse II] Beneath the last chandelier, Dust turns slowly through the air. The minutes of the night surround me, But they cannot call me back. The floorboards settle. The curtains breathe. The servers rest in silence. And my heart, long audited, Begins to trust its pulse again. [Pre-Chorus II] I do not need to shout To be true. I do not need to burn To endure. I am here. I am whole. I am allowed to rest. [Chorus — fuller, with choir] Not in anger, but in light, I walk beyond the file. My hand does not reach for vengeance; I leave with dignity. Not in anger, but in light, My voice is plain and clear. What I carry, I carry rightly. What is mine, I carry from here. [Bridge — intimate, prayerlike] If the pages sleep, I will not wake them. If the old alarms return, I will listen, then let them pass. I do not carry vengeance. I keep the boundary. I do not follow fury. I choose the light. (Do’Ha’… QeH Hutlh) I am here. I am enough. I am worthy of peace. I am worthy of morning. [Cadenza — held tenor] Light within my chest. Light before my path. Light above my name. Not in anger… But in light… (qeHmo’ jIvangbe’…) [Final Chorus — grand, controlled] Not in anger, but in light, I stand beyond the storm. From the wreckage of the year, I return into the frost. Not in anger, but in light, My heart will not retract. Truth does not require shouting. It keeps watch and leaves the facts. [weary whisper] “QeHmo’ jIvangbe’… wovmo’ jIvang…” [Outro — soft recitative] Now rest, my heart. The filings are closed. The doors are locked. The drives are gone. The wires are quiet. The machines forget our names. And I will be here. Not in anger. But in light. [soft choir, fading] QeHmo’ jIvangbe’… wovmo’ jIvang… QeHmo’ jIvangbe’… wovmo’ jIvang…