The Winding Path

I met myself on a winding path

With the beach ten yards away,

Walking slowly towards me then

By the pounding breakers spray,

The path was narrow, I stepped aside

As I felt a twinge of fear,

We both were startled, I heard us say,

‘What are you doing here?’

 

I looked at me as I must have been

At the age of thirty-one,

And I was visibly shaken, seeing

Just how the years had gone,

‘I'm not quite how I envisaged me,

Were the years ahead so hard?’

I felt a chill and replied to me,

‘I was hoist on my own petard.’

 

‘What has become of our hopes and dreams,

The ones that we must have shared?’

‘I let them slip through my fingers, once

I noticed that no-one cared.’

‘I always said that I’d have to fight

For the things that I held dear,’

‘But the years have changed, and rearranged

For none of those things are here.’

 

With one last look at each other, we

Then parted and turned away,

I to a desperate future,

And me to my dying day,

The I then turned that was thirty-one

‘Can you tell what happened to She?’

I couldn’t remember the one I meant,

‘She’s certainly not with me!’

 

David Lewis Paget

Reviews

[Valentine]

What has become of out hopes and dreams.?..I wonder just how many of us in that same position would ask the same question. I really loved this one as I could feel myself in that position asking the same questions. Where did my dreams go, how did I end up on this dead end road when I was so full of hopes and dreams. Deep thought provoking write. Valentine

[A Soap Mess Stories]

I'm sure a lot of us wonder what happened to our dreams as we navigate through life.

[Ellen Hammond]

You always tell the most interesting tales one could ever imagine. This is no exception.

[KaoticOrder]

This is so amazing and has such deep meaning

[R Smith]

a mental mind twister David, takes us all over the place in the intricacies of self meeting self, it would be an eyeopener that's for sure :)

[Marie]

I certainly would not want to meet the me from my past or the me from my future. I have all I can do to handle the present me.

[MomzillaNC]

Another brilliant write, David. This is an surreal retrospective dream.

It's a good thing we can't go back and play wicked fairy in our own pasts (or even good fairy). How would we ever resist the temptation to "tweak" things.

[Marie]

You're absolutely right. THe past should not be changed, even for the better--that might actually be for the worse.

[MomzillaNC]

I do agree. I'd be too afraid that changing even the position of one dust mote would change the joy of my now, of the last 24 years of love, loyalty, and joy to which all those past choices (good and bad) brought me.

[EdmundLinton]

Incredible writing. WOW! I loved every drop, and the ending was as captivating as the beginning. :)

[Jane Winters Rogers]

Reality? A dream? What is true is felt deeply. Actually I find it hard to express my reaction
To this poem in words..my Mom used to say..it's time to face the music and dance!!! This
Is so well written...thank you

[ANTO]

"We both were startled, I heard us say,
‘What are you doing here?’ - what a masterful way to handle two voices in unison David - very clever and funny too.

This has to be my favourite piece of self reflection in writing I've ever read DLP. So so sad and very real - only the few get to truly follow their dreams and they make you wonder if you did enough or if they were very lucky and it must be a combination of both. The cream rises to the top they say but only if the conditions are right (luck) otherwise the milk becomes curdled, thick and foul.

The final quatrain is such a bittersweet part - Im really blown away by the charm, the wit, the tale and the telling of this - truly a tour de force. Thanks for the RR - no, many thanks for the RR, my good friend.