RICH ALLEN MUSIC

In the heart of a fading town where the streets had long forgotten the laughter of youth, I often found myself wandering down familiar paths—the very ones that once buzzed with the vitality of my past. Here, memories clung to the air like the smell of rain on sun-warmed asphalt, heavy and rich, evoking a blend of nostalgia and a bittersweet ache.

As I strolled through the neighborhood, a chance encounter loomed on the horizon—an unexpected reunion with someone from my past. This possibility stirred a tumult of emotions within me. “What would I say if I ran into you?” I mused as I walked, the lyrics of my song creeping into my mind. Questions raced through me like the speeding cars I watched pass by. Would I cast my gaze to the ground in embarrassment, or would I find the courage to look into your eyes and acknowledge the shared history that still bound us, even after all this time?

In my mind, I replayed the conversation—a script composed in solitude, rehearsed countless times. Each iteration left me with an unfinished feeling, as if I were painting over a canvas teeming with deeper truths. Would I say it’s been a long time or that you looked good? I chuckled softly to myself, aware of the absurdity; those mundane lines felt like a slap against the depth of our shared past. I could envision you clearly: the way your hair sparkled in the sun, the ghost of a smile that once lit up your face, and the glimmer of unspoken truths lingering in the air.

“The tear drops in the corner of your eyes…” I whispered, wondering if, in that inevitable moment, I would dare to acknowledge the pain that had lived in our silence. The weight of love, both present and unexpressed, prickled at my heart. Would we embrace it, or allow it to fade quietly into the past? A tug-of-war between hope and fear filled me—could love linger after all this time, or was it destined to dissolve without resolution?

As I pondered, the lyrics echoed a deeper truth: words left unspoken can carve invisible wounds that ache for years. “I tell myself it’s okay to feel broken,” I thought. Each fragment of that phrase sent tremors through me, reminding me that while our shared love had felt so real, my silence had created an insurmountable chasm. How often had I convinced myself that those unvoiced words were better left unspoken?

The fire had scorched the earth we once walked together, while the rains that followed were a testament to our resilience. I had learned to survive amid the ashes; yet here I stood, haunted by memories that sparked like embers in my heart—the ‘what-ifs’ that cast shadows over each encounter. If only I could bridge the silence with just one honest conversation, the contentment of release might mend the brokenness between us.

Bracing myself, I thought, “What would the truth reveal?” The weight and lightness of that uncertainty struck me hard.

And then, there you were—not a specter of yesterday, but a vivid presence in the distance. I stood frozen, crashes of memories swirling around me; each one sharper than the last. Through the mist of unspoken farewells, I watched you walking away—your silhouette petite yet powerful. Suddenly, I felt a pull, a magnetic urgency urging me to speak, to chase after you before you slipped into the obscurity of memory once again.

Yet, I remained still. The fear of the unknown loomed larger than the yearning to connect, deepening the ache born from our history. “I had no strength to follow,” I whispered into the wind, realizing that consequence and vulnerability often restrain even the most desperate of hearts.

In those fleeting moments, understanding washed over me—perhaps it was easier to keep dreaming of what we once were than to confront the harsh, unforgiving future that lay ahead.

The silence that once felt like a comforting friend had now cocooned me, beautiful yet constricting. As I turned away, I was haunted by the echoes of “Oh, what would I say, what would I do?” ringing in my ears like wind chimes caught in a gentle breeze. The questions faded into the night, leaving behind nothing but the sound of my heart, echoing the lingering beat of unspoken love—an unresolved symphony resonating within me, compelling me to dream of better days.

Yet, even as I carried those unuttered words, a flicker of hope ignited within me, promising that perhaps one day I would muster the courage to break the silence. Until then, I would embrace the beautifully tangled fragments of our past. After all, the true weight of silence lay not in its absence, but in the echoes of what could have been.

The song’s meaning serves as a poignant reflection of the complexities of human relationships and the burden of unspoken truths. It highlights the struggle to navigate the past and the fear of confronting the unknown. The repeated refrain, “What would I say, what would I do,” encapsulates the uncertainty and longing that so often accompany unresolved emotions, underscoring the delicate thread that connects us to those we once loved.