Beneath the surface, where no eyes see,
A quiet ache resides, it’s only me
In shadows deep, where silence reigns,
There lies the weight of unseen chains.

A tender bruise the world can't find,
A scar that lingers in the mind.
It festers, whispers in the night,
And cloaks the day in absent light.

Each breath a struggle, yet no trace,
Of what torments beneath this face.
A smile, a mask so thinly worn,
Hides the storm where hearts are torn.

No tears to fall, no cry to hear,
Just hollow echoes filled with fear.
This pain, it gnaws beneath the skin,
A battle fought but cannot win.

And still, I rise with each new dawn,
Though weary, worn, and nearly gone.
For hope’s a thread, so fragile, thin
It’s all that holds this pain within.

© Thabiso Dube