There was a time I stood on front lines -
Heart racing with the thrill of the fight.
Believed in change. The power of words.
The certainty we'd make it right.

Now I watch from the sidelines.
The fire replaced by an ache.
A gnawing feeling some battles are lost
Before we even partake.

Youth marches on, fists raised high,
Their voices strong, unbroken.
And I see the ghost of who I was
Dancing in shouts and emotion.

I miss the burn - the untamed drive -
But I’m quenched in the quiet of dusk.
The slow fade of a fire
Once roaring. Now, a husk.