Monuments of Dust

[Intro] Dust on a shelf, a soft, slow hum of time Footsteps echo where the labels fade [Verse 1] In the corner, a chair wears a memory like a coat A box with a ribbon, tied tight to keep out the hope Tchotchkes line the margins of a map I never finished drawing Each item a quiet prayer to a past plan fading [Pre-Chorus] I count the hours by the weight of paper and glass What once sparked a dream now asks me to pass [Chorus] This room is full of monuments to what I meant to be Beautiful, inert burdens crowding the memory If I whispered to them, they would answer with rust and dust But I keep them, for fear that I might misplace my trust [Verse 2] A clock that never keeps good time, it slows my breath in the dark A vase that sheltered birthday wishes, now just a mark Shelves bow like quiet witnesses to the wishes I misplaced Emptiness dressed in velvet, with a familiar, hollow grace [Pre-Chorus] I trace the household aisles where the quiet thoughts abide The better version of me is sleeping somewhere inside [Chorus] This room is full of monuments to what I meant to be Beautiful, inert burdens crowding the memory If I whispered to them, they would answer with rust and dust But I keep them, for fear that I might misplace my trust [Bridge] Maybe tomorrow I’ll learn to let a few go To clear the light that leaks through these windows slow But tonight, I cradle the relics like old friends at a wake Hoping the emptiness won’t wake [Chorus] This room is full of monuments to what I meant to be Beautiful, inert burdens crowding the memory If I whispered to them, they would answer with rust and dust But I keep them, for fear that I might misplace my trust [Outro] So I breathe with the quiet weight, and rise with a gentler dawn Let the shadows teach me how to live with what I’ve drawn