Taken Wing
Do memories, and the events that live
within them, exist on another plane?
When we consider them, sort them,
try to surmise the truth they hold,
do we change or diminish them in any way?
Are they like crows, amused at our attempts
to affect something that is beyond our reach?
Memories change. Details fade
with each telling. I wait for a sign,
watch the sky for their return,
but they have taken wing, are gone.
Within the comments I left on Backstories, by Merril Smith, I realized I had the germ of a poem. Thank you, Merril, for the inspiration.
How ironic, that I found this in the “Unfinished” folder on my laptop (from 13 months ago), wondering why I never posted it. Of course, with my Swiss cheese memory, maybe I have.
Shared with Open Link Night LIVE #298 at dVerse~ Poets Pub
Image source: pixels.com
rivrvlogr 
You’re welcome, Ken. I’m glad you came back to this. I wonder all that about memories, too. 💙
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🙂 Memory seems to be a go to subject for me.
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I think as we get older, it’s one of the topics that resonates–at least for me.
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Yes, I love your tenacity and creativity and audacity. I have written poems from my own comments sometimes, but you have taken poetic strides into an undiscovered country.
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Thank you, Glenn. I am motivated by the conversations that take place here.
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This poem triggers both memories and anxieties … maybe in time the anxieties will be but memories? Or maybe the memories will all vanish? This part of aging is difficult to embrace, though preferable to ceasing altogether.
This is a nudge to write down what’s on one’s mind … even if stashed in an “unfinished” folder … and probably no matter the age of the mind.
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I might have a better hold on my memories if I’d journaled. Thanks, Jazz.
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Great to hear you read this one, Ken. I esp love the closing quatrain. Hat’s off.
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Thank you kindly, sir.
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So beautiful and thought-provoking, Ken. As with each memory I remember, it fades a little more. We recollect the last time we remembered it or recalled it to mind, I think. I’ve always been fascinated by concepts of memory, I incorporate it in my stories a lot in retrospect now that I think about it. Anyway, I love how you wrote this piece, and I resonated with these lines the most:
“Memories change. Details fade
with each telling.”
Such is life. I guess that’s why we learn to cherish the things we have even if in memory, it can eventually fade. Beautifully, poignantly written.
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Thank you for such a thoughtful comment, Lucy.
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I know that memories do change with time, but I’m not sure it’s possible to pinpoint just how. It helps to have sources that were there when the memory was created to orient to something close.
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I so enjoyed hearing you read this aloud, Ken! As Glenn said, you have raised the creativity bar with this poem.. I cannot even begin to describe how powerful the words and their effect upon reading is. Bravo! 💝💝
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A great poem Ken. Some have indeed flown the coop! I was just saying this week, I wonder how much we actually remember and how much is memory reinforced be the retelling of the story over and over! Good to see you today and hear you read this on the livestream!
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well said ken, and well written
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Thank you. 🙂
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I have a similar file called “pieces”🙂 When inspiration hits and it at times come in pieces.. I jot it down so they may come to life as a whole some day. Love the way yours have come to life here. Well done!
Pat
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I love how you took inspiration from Merril’s poem to write your own, poignant poem on memory. Impressive, especially as you say you have a ‘Swiss cheese memory’!
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All the memories etched in our soul, in my opinion travel with us forever.
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I love exploring memory, and you nail it here, with how they change and escape, until you don’t know if you’re remembering the event, or the memory itself.
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It is strange how, with time, some memories remain deeply etched while others fade. Beautiful.
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Thank you. It would be nice to have better control over that, but yes, some definitely have staying power.
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I guess that will remain something beyond our control. You are welcome.
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I often find that some comments I give can become like poems… maybe we should have that as a prompt someday.
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