reflection

A very very old poem that wil be in my chap-book

when kids are good they’re really good

and when they’re bad they’re pretty bad.

I think I was neither light nor dark

just occasionally sun burnt.

 

example:

when I was little I remember taking apart

an old radio, piece by piece and then smashing

it apart because 1) I couldn’t put it back

together and 2) I was sure I had killed

the man inside the radio in the process

(of taking apart the radio) and well,

he definitely was dead when I smashed

the radio!

 

I received a big wallop!

from mum

when she found out what I had done

to her radio.

 

of course it was easier when I was little,

times were easier. I remember them fondly,

and keep

a few idealized snapshots

(which I guard jealously).

I take them out every few years, touch them up,

sometimes

adding more or less sun

in convenient places.

 

Reviews

[emmajoy]

Another piece of fun yet touched with nostalgia. Aren't memories and photographs great! You've constructed the entire piece with literary skill and, a smile on your face.

I received a big wallop!
from mum
when she found out what I had done
to her radio


Bet you'd never be young again! Thanks lots for sharing.

[Raef C. Boylan]

Ah, the re-writing of our own histories - always seems less sinister when it's we who are editing/censoring/airbrushing. The very young tend to be well-intentioned in their mishaps; we just panic is all. I was never a smasher-upper [although I often wished I was and still do], but I was definitely a knocker-over and subsequently a receiver of wallops.
Interesting narrative; it feels very natural, like the way you've done that mini-list with the bracketed numbers, the way we do in notes for ourselves and our won heads. The focus on action is reminiscent of childhood, although it's also bookended by personal reflection, making it a balanced piece.
An enjoyable read, one many can relate to.
Great work.

[Jon]

This is an excellent write - sentimental in the good sense of the word - it makes you smile, it makes you think and it speaks of a humanity that every one of us can identify with.

[S.E. Conway]

cute

[Emily B]

sometimes adding more or less sun in convenient places. . . what a wonderful line!!!!! The memories we guard the most jealously are those that are tinged with happiness and sunshine--whether or not they were so grand we'll never know.

I think the taking apart radios must be a boy thing. My brother took apart everything. Nothing ever went back together.