Saturday, January 24, 2009

Phantom Memories

                                                                                                               Felsing

PHANTOM MEMORIES



Memories elude us.

They are like
Dot-to-dot pictures
And we cannot quite
Join the numbers.

We think we remember,
But the edges of the memory blur.

Photographs deceive.
They fool our memories.
Our brains
Register a picture,
Nothing more.

'Do you remember?'
We say.
But how can he recall
What I recall?
He wasn't there.

Oh, he was in the room,
But he wasn't there in my place,
Looking through my eyes,
Feeling my emotions.

He looked East.
I looked West.
How can we share a memory?

Sometimes a colour does it!
Suddenly, a  fabric
Brings everything into focus.
We are there again.
It is unsettling.

Music does it sometimes.
When I hear Paul McCartny's 'Yesterday'
The nostalgia 
Overwhelms me.

But I am deluded once again.

Those are his memories,
Not mine.
*

8 comments:

Jinksy said...

Beautifully nostagic and whistful overtones to this poem. Nice one.

Alisa Callos said...

I really like this one. I think you've captured truth. Memories sometimes seem like phantoms...they float through our minds and you wonder 'is that my memory, or do I only remember how it was told to me?' Anyway...it made me stop and ponder. :)

Understanding Alice said...

Hey this is lovely, and really made me think, especially the "He looked East.
I looked West."
Food for thought.

Granny Smith said...

This so vividly expresses the inevitable alienation of one mind from the other, no matter how close and dear the relationship, as they see through different eyes. Our memories are fragile and subject to change. This is a thoughtful, well-written, TRUE poem!

Devil Mood said...

hehe I really enjoyed this - you nailed many of the main issues related to memory - all that subjectivity.

Also Happy Australia Day!

Anonymous said...

the last line was just icing on the wonderful cake of ur poetry !!

Kat said...

heh heh.... that 'phantom memories' was for poem sake.... the world knows you capture hourly events in your diary leaf..!!!!!

jabblog said...

Memories on the tip of my brain - most elusive. Received memories also deceive.