some of us measure our lives
in trips around the sun
or in moments of bliss
when eternal happiness is
found in the hairsbreadth
between two milliseconds
but it's safe to say my
life is the sum
of all my lost parts

i've met some characters in my lifetime
had our fair share of sordid trials
and mischievous misadventures
epic enough memories to fill a storybook
that might rival the Illiad or Aeneid
but they all fade

       one
               by
                      one

we were all sadly misguided
they told us
that our friends are like the stars
that even if we can't see
they're still there
hiding in the empty spaces
where we used to find them

                            if
                     only
                  it
         were
   true

our friends our families our loved ones
are all like stars
shining brightly in the dark for
what seems like eons
crystal calm before impending doom
each of us
a supernova exploding outwards
and scattering to the bitter ends of
this cold and lonesome universe

and there's a certain
melancholy in sweetness
a tepid blessing in a curse
an oath inscribed in every atom in  
everyone and everything—
nothing lasts forever
death is the only promise