A Sign on the Road

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The long road of life still beckons -
a signal from a dim and distant shore,
a siren's plaintive call, promises unkept
and a subtle suggestion of uncertainty.

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Memories stand naked, like leafless trees,
and line the shadowed path I follow,
solemn reminders of each step I've taken
to reach this cold and lonely crossroad.

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A black night of doubt astounds me
as the Stygian void surrounds me.
Like shadows cast by lightning's flash,
mere words reveal only a glimpse
of the wasteland of my aching heart,
and time's passage is but a cryptic hint
of the cataclysm of tomorrow.

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Love's wretched echoes return me,
hopeless dreamer, to my fantasy
anticipating, breathlessly awaiting,
the turning page, the end of the story,

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but, like some entity that never dies,
the dream lives on forever in my mind -
jibe at my weary soul, scant sign of warning,
hint of the imminent storm to come,
artifact of the perilous past, harbinger
of the long road that still lies before me.