Shuffling along dusty banister
Skin flaking like ancient paint
Pointlessness of purpose forgotten
Blurred edges do crumbling memories taint

A struggling artist, a mother of two
A childless veteran, or a lost love
Time washes colours to pastel hues
Indistinguishable lives from up above

Strength of fleeting mind predetermined
To revel in memories, real or fake
Random muttering of wandering thoughts
Quivering banks of a brimming lake

Musings informed by a life fully lived
Regrets of life lost to indefinite wait
Unsifted are these thoughts to audience deaf
To dust, to ash, is assigned mortal fate

Make of this what you will and wish
Live the life of a hero or the deprived
The garden will grow to cover past truths
Same end awaits all those who survive.