BEYOND THE SHADE

 

Beyond the Shade

She always wore those dark sunglasses,

A shield against the world’s sharp glare.

But if she dared to lower them,

I’d promise to meet her there—

Not as a shadow, not as a ghost,

But as a presence, steady and close.

I’d be a portrait of quiet grace,

No stories to twist, no lines to trace.

I’d think before I speak, before I move,

With nothing to hide, nothing to prove.

Just let me see your eyes, unmasked,

And I’ll give you all you’ve never asked.

Remember the carnival’s dizzying whirl,

When I laughed like a wide-eyed girl?

Now we nod like strangers on steady ground,

Our words polite, but hollow in sound.

The thrill has faded, the colors mute,

Yet something lingers, something acute.

You’re the glass that watches, cool and clear,

While I stand in line, pretending not to peer.

I search your lenses for a sign, a crack,

But all I see is my own face staring back.

I wanted to be a monument, tall and grand,

A symbol of something we never planned.

But unbuilt, it haunts like a forgotten vow,

A space between then and now.

Those sunglasses, always there,

A wall of silence we both wear.

When the noise fades and the crowd is gone,

Perhaps we’ll take that walk at dawn.

We’ll wander with no map, no wrong to right,

Just two souls stepping into the light.

I’ll bring my heart, unguarded, bare,

You choose the time, the place, the air.

In the quiet of our steps, we might find

A truth that’s brave, a tie that binds.

Beyond the shade, beyond the past,

We’ll meet as equals, free at last.