Could've beens

What could have been
is a strange being
elusive and dead
yet raising its phantom head
through all the crevices
in the maze of reality
you know how it feels
when all your proxies are lined up
and a nebulous force
blows on them until
you are exposed
threadbare
vulnerable
and you remember
who you used to be
songs that tickled your innocence
voices that eased the surges
touches that seared and healed
repeatedly
and then you flip back to the present
in awe of who you have become
even doubting for an instant
who the hell you are
the ghost or the reborn
and then you see it
like a hologram
switching faces in guile