I feel the whispers of a time

Brush past as faint as gossamer...

I hear some voices calling out

And hear my youthful voice call back...

 

When I was young, a child still,

I felt the breeze caress my soul

Of days that felt a careless joy

Untouched by complicated thoughts.

When we were kids and dreamed of how

Once we grew up we'd stay awake 

Past bedtimes that our parents made

And then we'd play until we dropped

All the games we knew and loved.

We dreamed of futures holding hands

And eating all the sweets we could,

Of never, ever, parting ways

And staying friends through pinky swears

That we would never fall apart.

And once we all grew rich and strong

We'd dine on burgers, pizza, fries,

With ice cream as the fine dessert

With any other treat we wished!

We'd eat, and laugh, and play some games

And still our hearts and minds would soar

To magic lands inside our heads

Where bad was bad and right was right.

We always dreamed about those days

And always felt we'd never part.

We always talked on simple things,

Like who we'd marry that we knew,

And speculate upon the kids

The stork would bring us in some way.

We rolled down grassy hills for fun

Amidst the giggles as we spun

And later wondered why we itched...

But that, to us, still mattered little.

Our feelings knew no complex terms,

Only anger, fear, or joy, or sorrow...

Just love and hate, no in between.

 

And even now I dream of then,

The times when we had dreamed of now,

And wished those simple dreams were true,

Not lost or given up.

For like our toys, we let them go,

And now we don't know where they are. 

And even should we meet again

We know that things are not the same.

For who we are betrays the time 

When we had simply wished the best,

We cannot be who once we were

We all must grow and change our course.

It's only now, when it's too late,

I turn around to grab the hand

Of all those times to bring them back,

But all I grasp are memories.

 

Sometimes I think I hear her laugh,

Or see his grin with baby teeth,

I see us sneaking in the night

For midnight snacks we didn't need.

I see us running, hand in hand,

Careening through a grassy park,

And I feel the joy inside me

From the friends I'll never leave.

 

Now I dwell upon those bygone days

And tears well up inside my heart

For one cannot return to hours

That have already been spent.

Still their laughter echoes through my soul

As I breathe a sigh into the past.

Things cannot be the way they were,

This single fact I cannot change. 

I can't help but wonder how different things would be

If I could shape the world with dreams and memories.