 |
| Winchelsea Beach - Sussex |
Of Memory
Swirling mist
Coiling
Or steam rising.
Images blinking incoherently.
Snatches of lines once said -
Chronological tombola -
The fruits of growing older.
I saw a face,
I heard a voice...
Once.
Unchosen
They well up
From benighted depths
Far below -
Swirling, spinning -
People you used to know,
Sights once seen,
Places once been –
Recollection,
Reminiscence...
Once.
Editing
Is all.
What’s saved
And what is lost -
You never get to choose
Or count the cost
Of the life you’ve lived
Defined by
Memory’s markers -
Like ancient groynes
In the tide-washed sands
Of time.
I liked this very much. I was glad I knew what groynes were, though, since that was a fairly central image. We don't have them in eNZed.
ReplyDeleteYou have a frequent (icon in the visual arts) motif? of regret and might-have-been-ness. It's interesting.
KATHERINE I think that icon/motif is part of the human condition. There may be bluster, ego and sheen but scrape the surface and I think that this is what you will invariably find in larger or lesser degree. I really appreciate the fact that you have given my poems thoughtful consideration. It's encouraging.
ReplyDelete