The below poem was submitted for The Common Language Project 2023. The word usage per the following is shown in bold; to see the poem as it was presented click here.

ambition	bounded	dwindle	identify	means	received
artery	chart	entire	joining	mercy	slant
autonomous	clicking	fitting	ladder	mesh	tangent
belly	compass	guide	lost	metal	unmade
bend	drove	hem	magnetized	node	wear

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Ambition for dreams unmade
Could we but bend time to parts unplayed
We slant towards tangent and regret
Joining our minds to what we can’t forget

Through vein and artery, its pull is felt
We wear it ’round the belly like a belt

Desire to mesh ourselves with where we were
Fitting together what isn’t and what was
Lost in thoughts of what could’ve been
Yet bounded by reality we live in

Opportunities dwindle the longer we wait
There’s but a guide for the paths we take
Yet sometimes we hesitate
Heavy like metal we feel time’s weight

Even with means to chart the past
On the ladder of time, we’d lose our grasp
Our entire focus magnetized
Like a broken compass drawn to lies

If you dwell on what drove you there
You eventually find yourself in despair

But in mercy, you identify
Not the how nor the why
Just a node that changed your life
Things start clicking towards future bright

You hem the fabric of your choices
As you’ve received helpful voices
Though autonomous, you’re not alone
Therein find healing for your groans