I painted my face
not to be seen—
but to remember
the shape of my longing.
A veil of blue silence curls
where my voice once reached
for names now spoken
only in dreams.
I miss the dust, the sun-worn walls,
the scent of dusk in my hometown.
I miss the laughter
that used to find me
without asking where I belonged.
I carry their echoes
beneath this quiet skin.