Long Lost Memories

So much of life
is composed of memory;
Memory that fades
as time goes by.
    
Memories of happy years,
or sad ones so full of tears.
Memories of loved ones gone
or days that seemed to go all wrong.

Lost memories;
regained through pictures
or recollections by others.

Memories that linger,
that seem to never fade -
sometimes sweet,
sometimes sad.

Do memories change?
Do they sometimes bend
to meet want or need?
How do you see
the true memories?

Can the past actually
be changed,        
to satisfy your longing
for a different past.

You know as well as I -
NO!
it cannot!

You can pretend -
live another life;
but the past is still there
the actuality, the existence
of your actions -
and the memories of other’s actions,
they all make up
YOUR LIFE

Copyright Dawn Harkness 1983