In the cartography of forgotten places
A topography of what's been erased
Lies a residue of what's past
A palimpsest of love and pain forever fast

In the archaeology of the soul
A stratigraphy of memories unfold
Like the rings of a tree, they tell a tale
Of seasons come and gone, of love that's failed

Whatever is left, it festers
A wound that refuses to heal
A scar that throbs with every heartbeat
A reminder of the fragility of our deepest retreat