Dedication
For Horace Moore (1851-1876), who waited in silence until someone heard him.

I never knew you - only stumbled upon your resting place, hidden and hushed beneath time's heavy hand.
No stories left, no photographs, no footsteps near your grave. Just your name, carved in fading stone, quietly asking not to be forgotten.

Yet, in that stillness, something stirred.
You spoke without words, and in your absence, I found presence.
Your lonely grave became my inspiration, your silence sparked my words.

Through you, I remembered that every life - no matter how lost to history - once mattered.
And because of you, stories now live again.

Thank you, Horace. You set me on this path.