It parches the mouth with
its permanence,
Pains of hunger and
heartache combined.
Its desire controls and
consumes thoughts,
Captivating and possessing
one’s very peace.
Distant unanswered
questions remain so silent,
Past tribulations rest in an
untouchable denial.
Memories of unresolved and
unjustified traits,
Languish between today and
back in another era.
Pavements with ghostly
treads lead to no-where,
Gone are recognisable
connections of yesteryear.
From time to time images
of other times emerge,
Though empty of bodily
warmth or familiar sound.
Enchantment and
pre-occupation colludes to entrap,
Absorbing and enslaving a willing
regressive mind.
An attraction with rare possibilities
of great promise,
But that seduction often
fails to deliver contentment.
Longing overwhelms and
demands much concentration,
Perhaps today’s yearnings
may be more easily satisfied.
©Copyright Eileen T O’Neill 19/03/2015
Poetry Jam Prompt: ‘Looking Back.’…
Yes perhaps today's yearnings are indeed more easily dealt with. Sometimes best to leave the past behind. Hope you had a wonderful vacation in California.
ReplyDeleteI like the way you have compared 'yesterday' to 'today,' Eileen. Sometimes it is better, perhaps, not to reflect back at those earlier times with so much unresolved. It is better to live in the present and enjoy what today brings.
ReplyDeletesometimes past creates ripples and waves in our minds and that yearning for making everything alright but most of the time that's not to be....the conflict of the mind is palpable here Eileen...
ReplyDeleteWe can look back in the last but cannot change it. Yet we can still act on the future and what is in store there for us.
ReplyDeleteYes and amen! It is a seductive thing to indulge in the past. We don't live there anymore. I really enjoyed this.
ReplyDeleteLife can draw us back into the past, but regrets are a was of time. I loved this and the way it draws the reader in.
ReplyDeletevery nice write
ReplyDelete"Memories of unresolved and unjustified traits,
Languish between today and back in another era.
Pavements with ghostly treads lead to no-where,"
my favourite lines
much love...
Eileen, this is a very reflective and philosophic piece. The contrast between the "way we were" in the past and the "way we are" now is expressed well and highlights the fact that for many people it feels as if the "me of the past" is a completely different person to the "me of now".
ReplyDelete