This Wooden Box

 

Old love letters

         Tattered and torn… Rough around the edges

Like the memories I hold.

 

The words transparent as a ghost

                  Yet… still visible enough

                           To haunt dreams.

 

So many pens

         All dried up

From… endless conversations

                           That seems in vain now.

 

Photographs… images of smiles

         That I can’t find anymore

                  Even in a house of mirrors.

 

These are the things I keep

Locked in this wooden box…

 

I just wish I could throw away the key

Yet it remains around my neck…

 

                  Close to my heart.

 

Reviews

[LisetteCanWrite!]

Wonderful feeling.. yes old love letters are so nice.. even torn and tattered ones.. love the last stanzas:

These are the things I keep
Locked in this wooden box�
I just wish I could throw away the key
Yet it remains around my neck�
Close to my heart.

Very beautiful.. that you would keep those items.. hopefully you remove that key for the next love though .. create a new one and make room for a new love and a brand new box to fill with future great love writings .. never get rid of the old love letters as they do so make such great memories to glance at once in a great while.. I wish I still had my first love's writings but someone destroyed mine sadly.. thank you for sharing!!! =)

[[untitled]]

I have to admit this is one of my favorites by you. You introduce the reader with an intimate look into your personal keepsakes and the emotion/memories behind them. This piece offers some nice, quiescent imagery and lovely metaphors. For example:

"Photographs� images of smiles

That I can't find anymore

Even in a house of mirrors."

~ Stunning! Something as simple as a wooden box can hold so much inside...

[Honeypot]

Great idea for a poem. I loved the ending with the key hanging around his neck. The poem has a sweet, lonely feel to it - the feeling of an relationship ending even though its not necessarily what you want. I loved it.

[Gheeneil]

Such wooden box signifies an old flame he had and lost. It tells so much stories. Though, they are kept hidden and locked, the memories still come rushing to haunt a restless heart. This is very nostalgic. Beautiful!

[~Mariposa Una Lila~]

you are awsome and creative...i admire your work very much! x0x00x0x00x

[EmpressPoetess]

A powerful write here! Full of emotiomal feelings and written very well. Memories are hard to let go of.

[Anastasia Starlena]

What a powerfully written piece about the complexities of letting go. This piece shows human emotion in it's realistic form. A great piece. Sad but very romantic.

[Meredith Leigh]

That's really neat. I love the imagery in it, and the description. The fact that you wrote the poem entiely around a box, and what's in it is great. I love how you expanded from the physical form of the box to explain the emotion of the letters. And oooh, I just loved it. Great work!

- Kriss

[Katherine Wyatt]

Wow... Yes.How the images of what we have loved.. what we have loss can be an albatross and yet a joy...Beautifully penned!

[Anita B Jacques]

Cherished reminders, so nice to have, memory lane. a rush of memories good or not so good can be overwhelming, it happens to me many times, the rest of the day is wasted, you are a romantic for the mention of the key around the neck. A good write, thank you Dale for sharing. God Bless you.

[Bud]

Ah...the keys always give it away! Great write!