Escape exhausts the restless heart
Running multiplies the cage
Freedom roots within the place
Courage learns to disengage
Distance fails to cure the wound
Flight rehearses hidden fear
Freedom stays to face the storm
Grounding truth where feet appear
Remaining costs a braver coin
Presence sharpens inner sight
Freedom settles into breath
Stable through the longest night
Those who stay without collapse
Claim the land beneath their skin
Freedom lives where choice stands firm
Not where leaving once had been