Carried Forward (Villanelle)
On the Persistence of the Past
The years go forward, but the past remains,
A burden that settles deeper as we age.
Time offers distance, not release from chains.
We think that healing comes with autumn rains,
That grief will soften, anger leave the stage.
The years go forward, but the past remains.
Each decade adds its sediment of pains,
And what we bury refuses its cage.
Time offers distance, not release from chains.
The face that haunts me neither grows nor wanes,
Unchanging in its fury or its rage.
The years go forward, but the past remains.
I've crossed the country, altered my terrains,
Yet carry still that unforgotten page.
Time offers distance, not release from chains.
What folly makes us think our loss sustains
No power once we've turned another age?
The years go forward, but the past remains,
Time offers distance, not release from chains.
About the Creator
Tim Carmichael
Let your becoming be louder than your fear, and your smallest steps become the road you once thought impossible to walk. An Appalachian poet and cookbook author my book Beautiful and Brutal Things is on Amazon, Link 👇
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