The wind rises the leaves fall in silence
Once-soft kindness drifts like dust in the air
How many times have I bowed my head
Only to wonder if my heart was ever spared
Frost carves wisdom into time
The past a fleeting shadow left behind
I once thought patience was virtue silence was grace
Yet who has ever found peace in self-effaced space
To be ruthless is not to be cold
But the mark of a soul that has grown bold
No longer bending for fleeting approval
No longer chained by a false portrayal
To speak of wealth to claim my desire
Is not a crime but a rising fire
Independence my guiding creed
And in its light I am freed
I once feared the chill of hearts unknown
But now I walk where the wild winds roam
No need to conform no need to kneel
The world is vast and I am real
Unbowed unbroken through storm and night
Even in darkness I shine with light