Travesty
Travesty (Poem)
I saw the road less traveled
‘Twas one I meant to take
But slave to my desires
My dreams did I forsake
Now on a road more traveled
Still can’t remove my eyes
From the path that could’ve been
“My failure,” I surmise
But the travesty is not my path
Nor that which could’ve been
The travesty is that I see
Myself as failure’s twin.
- A. J. Darkholme (May 2014)
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Travesty (Lyrics)
[Intro]
I saw the road…
I saw the road…
But I turned away…
I turned away…
[Verse 1]
I saw the road less traveled,
Lit by a softer flame.
But I gave in to comfort,
And walked the one that came.
My hunger spoke in silence,
My dreams were left behind.
Now I march with the masses,
But you still haunt my mind.
[Pre-Chorus]
Oh, I still see you… the path I never knew…
A whisper in the dark, a ghost that feels like truth.
[Chorus]
But the travesty’s not the road I chose,
Or the one that faded in the dust and snow.
It’s this voice in my head that just won’t give in,
Screaming I’m nothing but failure’s twin.
[Verse 2]
Now on this crowded highway,
I wear a plastic grin.
But there's a silence inside me,
Where the dream should’ve been.
I trace it in the rearview,
A shadow passing by.
Every mile just reminds me,
I never said goodbye.
[Pre-Chorus]
Oh, I still feel it… that weight I can’t let go…
A story never written, a truth I’ll never know.
[Chorus]
But the travesty’s not the road I chose,
Or the one that faded in the dust and snow.
It’s this voice in my head that just won’t give in,
Screaming I’m nothing but failure’s twin.
[Bridge]
It’s not the path, it’s the mirror I hate,
The version of me that’s always too late.
It’s not regret, it’s how I wear the blame,
Like a badge, like a scar, like a self-given name.
[Breakdown]
Tell me I’m more than the path I denied!
Tell me I’m more than the years I let slide!
Tell me the road ahead still holds light!
'Cause I'm drowning in the silence of what felt right…
[Final Chorus]
But the travesty’s not what I left behind,
Or the dream that slipped right through the hands of time.
It’s this echo that burns beneath my skin…
Telling me I’m nothing… nothing but failure’s twin.
[Outro]
I saw the road less traveled…
And turned the other way.
Still haunted by the silence
Of the words I couldn’t say.