the pity about the good old days
is that we don't realize
when we are living them
we don't know, when we are young
full of life and hopeful of years
that they are our foundation
that we will yearn for former days
when we grow old
faces we look upon, voices we hear
familiar places, scents, sounds
will one day be memories
and those we should have listened to
we will long to converse with again
we will tell ourselves we must
live for today, move past the past
but memories won't die, good or bad
they linger in our thoughts, emotions
the good old days were an unsolved mystery
we will contemplate life's meaning
and death's inevitability
and find that perhaps we are
incapable of comprehending either
if only, we could go back, would we?
life is a game we know we won't win
in the end we can never go back again
what lies beyond is yet to be seen
what is real, what is a dream?
there is only today, make it good
then we will understand the truth
of youth being wasted on the young
and will wonder, ponder, fear
that ours was wasted
for the good old days are long gone
unreachable, except in our heart
there will be no more chances
no redo, no reconstruction of the past
I love this poem! It's bitter sweet to think about memories from the past, but as a memoirist and poet, I spend a lot of time doing just that. "Then we will understand the truth of youth being wasted on the young," as La Belle Rouge writes so beautifully.
Insightful, and well-expressed Susan. The 'good ole days' (for me) were far more tumultuous than life is now though. Still.... there are choice times I remember with great fondness. The creative good people I worked with, and the challenging times in college, and the great and grueling adventures on the road with bands. Thank you for sharing. r
Reviewed by JoAnne Cromp (Reader)
Reviewed on October 13, 2022
I completely relate to what !!!!One day I'll see you and me in our glorious new place for eternity will be ever more sweeter and joyous. All I'll have to do is think of dearest you La Belle and there you'll be ALWAYS !!!
beautiful, it's what makes it special, we cannot redo it. and yes, except in our heart, there we can feel and live it now. thank you for this piece. lovely reminder.
That is why we need to teach our children to enjoy their time and make it count, less computer games and more nature walks, and meaningful talks with those who love them. Nicely written Ma Belle, spoken from your tender heart, with a voice that is audible and effective, :)
A wise rendering of what childhood memories really mean. Psychologists have learned that we forget bad experiences (unless they are very traumatic, and sometimes even those) over time and tend to remember pleasant ones.
I think if I could go back to my childhood I would be more shocked at behavior than I was when it happened. And, I certainly would take the knowledge I have now to chart a different course for my life, hopeful to avoid the worst that happened to me in favor of something better. But don't we all do that even though we say, "I wouldn't change anything."
Many lines in this piece speak to all of us. Yet, we are who we are today because we had that period in our lives, and you, as a poet, are reflecting and reminding us to not forget. Poetry has a calling, and pieces like this fulfill it. The lyrical look at life in words and images should impact any age with the possibility of enriching those lives with the poet's POV hopefully sparking the reader's appreciation and especially their imagination. Such was the result of reading this fine piece of nostalgia. Keep writing.
Such truth and wisdom in your words and as I get older I can accept more of todays problems and drama for hindsight tells me it could always be worst. I grew up in a poor family of nine children often barely existing...but we had love, we had caring, we had strength in the hope of each new day. Excellant writing Belle.
Fee
The Double Mirrors and Ones and Zeros theories, by Dylan Tauber. Parallel mirrors in our minds produce a vision of the infinite. Love is all that exists. Free PDF download.
This book presents a narrative story of one person's journey of transcendental Awakening and Enlightenment as guided by his two Sage companions. It is grounded in Zen Buddhist and Taoist perspective and uses the I Ching as its structural framework. T
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I love this poem! It's bitter sweet to think about memories from the past, but as a memoirist and poet, I spend a lot of time doing just that. "Then we will understand the truth of youth being wasted on the young," as La Belle Rouge writes so beautifully.
Regis. 🙏🐦🦋🌸🍂
I think if I could go back to my childhood I would be more shocked at behavior than I was when it happened. And, I certainly would take the knowledge I have now to chart a different course for my life, hopeful to avoid the worst that happened to me in favor of something better. But don't we all do that even though we say, "I wouldn't change anything."
Ron
Fee