NaPoWriMo 2019 – Day 16
Echo
a repetition of sound produced by the reflection of sound waves from a wall, mountain, or other obstructing surface. (Dictionary definition)
Memories are no more than echoes
bouncing off wall of the past.
Sights and sounds reflecting that
which was lived, sometimes long ago.
Time passing only gives life to more.
Repetition might mean we need
to move on, leave a place where
we’ve been stuck for awhile.
Or, climb the mountain of its meaning
to learn what it seeks to teach us. Were
we too quick to get past another obstacle
and missed the nurture it offered?
Perhaps it’s time to paint that wall blue
with new knowing, cover that bland beige
we preferred at a younger age because it
permitted us to just keep moving.
Maybe, if we let its reflection rest for more
than a fleeting moment, at center of our
being, we could find healing that allows
for making new and very different choices.
Elizabeth Crawford 4/16/2019
Process Notes: The image is a bonfire photo put through the kaleidoscope app. I’ve always liked it because it is so different from the others I made. When I looked at it today, it made me think of the word Echo. Went to the Dictionary, looked up the word and the poem started dancing in my head.
Soul's Music 
I spent a lot of time trapped with my memories this past winter. Unfortunately, this introspection wasn’t the best choice for me. I need to be more selective. If I could somehow unload the bad memories and just hold onto the good. I love the way you connected memories with echoes. Especially loved “echoes bouncing off wall of the past.”
Thank you, Marianne. And I more than understand that desire to hang on to the good ones, and let go of the bad. Unfortunately, writing poetry every day seems to bring me back to those very places. One of the reasons I was so reluctant to do NaPo this year. I do know, or firmly believe, that the persistence of the bad ones is because they seek healing. Healing which allows us to grow into what we are truly capable of becoming. I am a firm believer in the Healing of Memories, because I’ve been there and done that. I said yes, only because I know the poetry of you three, inspires and speaks to me. And that is exactly what I find happening now. Can’t thank you enough,
Elizabeth
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That opening line really drew me in……..memories, echoes of times long past. I like that. A wonderful write, my friend.
Thank you, Sherry. I believe memories own a distinct purpose. And the more I write, the more are awakened. We write from the places we know and have experienced first hand. That is the wall from which they are reflected. As someone else has so eloquently said, “When we write, we bleed,” we feel what we write, and those feelings often “disturb the sound of silence.”
Elizabeth
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Elizabeth, yes, there are some memories that haunt me. I also do believe we need to face them and heal from them.
Excellent writing, my friend.
Love,
Pamela
Thank you, Pamela. We all possess some of those haunting memories and sometimes they can be difficult. I personally believe that is one of the reasons I continue to write, or ever began doing so.
Elizabeth
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I love this one!! The echo of memories seems to follow us for all times. I remember my Mother telling me, time will heal. At the time, I said to myself, but what about this moment? But, my Mother was right, “in time,” the bad memories heal and all that is left, are the good ones. xoxoxohugs
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