Day558【Composure】

A daily monochrome photo-poetry series by naozo. Since 2025, each work pairs a moment from everyday life with a poem from NZ, the artist's future self. Through glass, light, and silence, the series turns self-doubt into dialogue.

NZPHOTOGRAPH & naozo

Day558【Composure】

DEAR naozo,

Do you still waver

That is what

I would ask

People

Want recognition

Want victory

Want proof

And so

They are wounded

by small words

And shaken

by small events

Yet

Sometimes

I wonder

Whether what makes a person strong

Is not victory

But composure

When young

People fight everything

React to everything

Carry everything

Yet

Those who keep walking

Learn something

Some words

Need no response

Some battles

Need not be fought

Some things

Need not be proven

That is not surrender

Nor arrogance

It comes from knowing

What is worth protecting

People

Do not gain composure

By gaining more

They gain composure

By letting more go

I believe

Composure

Is not having more time

It is having

a wider heart

So

Do not carry everything

Do not answer everything

Just do not lose sight

Of what truly matters

That is enough

What do you think

from NZ

This story is a work of fiction. Except for the named individuals, all elements are products of imagination. The boundary between reality and fiction is intentionally ambiguous, and its interpretation is left to the reader.