The echoes of laughter fade, 
hushed whispers of a time when 
innocence wove through our days
fragile threads now unraveling.

A boy stands by the edge of the river
                    eyes wide with wonder
tracing the ripples that dance 
beneath the setting sun.
The world felt endless then
             each stone a treasure
                    each tree a fortress.

He built dreams in the sand
fortresses of imagination
only to watch them crumble 
beneath the relentless tide.
              The waves took his castles
and with them, pieces of his youth.

The seasons changed
leaves turned to gold and fell
blanketing the ground 
with remnants of yesterday.
In the quiet moments
he searched for the boy 
                   he used to be
finding only shadows 
and echoes of forgotten laughter.

Grief settled like morning mist
                    dense and inescapable
clouding the paths he once walked 
with carefree abandon.
                The weight of loss 
pressed against his chest
each breath a reminder 
of what was no more.

He sees the world through different eyes
                scars etched into his soul
a testament to battles fought 
and innocence lost.
The boyhood dreams lie buried
                       beneath the soil of reality
where they whisper of what could have been.

In the stillness of twilight
he mourns the boy he left behind
the one who believed 
in endless summers and unbroken promises.
The man stands alone
bearing the burden of knowledge
yet cherishing the fragments 
of a past that shaped him.

This is the death of boyhood
a solemn rite of passage
where innocence fades 
and grief fills the void.
But within the sorrow, 
there lies a quiet strength
a resilience born of loss
and a heart that still remembers 
                               . . . how to dream.