She Never Meant To Go
By Kimberly Medeiros
She Never Meant to Go
(Tribute to Iryna Zarutska, 2002–2025)
Verse 1
She came from distant skies,
From bomb shelters, echoes of war in her eyes;
Fled the sirens, fled the fear,
Chasing hope in a new land she held dear.
Young hands working hard to learn,
English class, community, each bridge she earned;
Dreamed of helping animals, gentle dreams she sowed,
In kindness her light would always glow.
Pre-Chorus
The train car rattled, the night was still,
She texted love, expecting home, dreaming peace until—
Chorus
In Charlotte nights, no warning came,
A blade, a whisper, then only pain.
She never meant to go, never asked to fade,
Just a gentle soul, in the shadows laid.
Her laughter stolen, her future robbed,
Iryna, your name we’ll always hold in love.
Verse 2
She rode that Blue Line train one evening,
After work, after hope, after believing
That somewhere safety would stay,
That each sunrise would not betray.
But four minutes in the dark, unseen,
A pocket knife, the horror between;
Her blood spilled silent on the floor,
While people watched and turned their eyes, nothing more.
Pre-Chorus
A seat she took, unaware,
Of danger lurking, of midnight’s glare—
Chorus
In Charlotte nights, no warning came,
A blade, a whisper, then only pain.
She never meant to go, never asked to fade,
Just a gentle soul, in the shadows laid.
Her laughter stolen, her future robbed,
Iryna, your name we’ll always hold in love.
Bridge
Her father far away, in a land torn apart,
Her mother and siblings left with broken hearts.
We mourn what was lost — dreams, art, a voice,
A heart that’d help, a soul that’d choose love’s choice.
She wanted more than escape — she wanted to build,
To learn, to love, to see her dreams fulfilled.
Final Chorus
In Charlotte nights, the train still rolls,
But a girl’s gone silent, a warm heart cold.
She never meant to go, never asked to fade,
Just a gentle soul, in the shadows laid.
Her laughter stolen, her future robbed,
Iryna, your name we’ll always hold in love.
Outro
So we light a candle, we hold her close,
We speak her name — so nobody forgets.
That kindness dies when fear holds sway,
That hope will lift, though darkness threatens yet.
Iryna — rest, your journey’s known,
In every whispered wind, you’re never alone.
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