The Mind and Its Shadowplay

(A fragmented lament—love, illusion, and the echoes in between) Verse 1 Her fingers cling—but do they touch my skin? Or am I just the ghost you’re whispering in? Cold glass between us, breath turns to frost, A silhouette—was I ever lost? Verse 2 A whispered theme, the world’s a stage. But who’s the actor, who’s the sage? Footsteps echo, a script half-torn, I play my part, but who’s forlorn? Bridge 1 (Oh, the curtains call, but the lights won’t rise— Is it you I see, or just my own disguise?) Verse 3 Small hands reach high: "Papa, don’t let us fade." But the paint is cracking, the colors evade. A child’s plea in a crumbling frame, Are we the dream, or just the name? Verse 4 A mirrored hall where echoes dance. I chase a voice—was it happenstance? A thousand faces, none my own, Just fractured light and shadows thrown. Bridge 2 (Spin me ‘round till the walls give way— Is this the dawn, or just delay?) Verse 5 The wars outside—my sorrows too? Or just reflections I’ve dragged into view? The bombs, the tears, the silent cries, Are they mine, or just goodbyes? Verse 6 A fleeting light, a shape so bright. I lunge—it’s gone. Was it ever in sight? A spark, a glint, a dying star, Or just the wound left by the scar? Bridge 3 (Hold me close, though the night may lie— Tell me we’re real before we die.) Verse 7 Or just a play I’ve scripted dark? A monologue inside the ark. No audience left, just empty rows, Yet still I bow—who really knows? Verse 8 The love, the pain, the rising tide. I drown, I gasp, I clutch your side. But is your heartbeat just my own, A borrowed pulse, a hollow tone? Bridge 4 (If all’s illusion, then let it be— Just stay a little longer with me.) Outro Until the thought lets go—or will it? A final whisper, half-inhibit. The shadows stretch, the wall stays tall— Were we ever here at all?