It does not bloom in stillness,
not rest in the quiet corners of
forgotten rooms.
Democracy thrives not in silence,
but in the voices of those who dare to speak
and shape its course.

It moves through streets,
echoes in crowded halls,
waits patiently at ballots,
trembles in clenched hands
raised not in violence
but in demand.

It falters when unheard,
when fear weaves its way into speech,
when truth is bartered
for comfort.

Yet still-
it survives in every broken sentence
that reaches toward justice,
in the questions
no one wants to answer,
in the courage
to stand when others sit.

Democracy breathes
only when we do.