Way Back

Dirt roads draw

Souls back home,

Pull heart strings

Towards past

Where thought swirls

And spin

Like loved ones on dance floors

Covered in dust

From over-used boots,

Recall times outside

Staring at old houses

Imagining haunting tales

Of lost ones that sat

And stared out windows

At a different world,

And we wonder of

The stories that will be told

When we can no longer stare

From our windows-

Will they be of olden days

When hair was still bright

And dreams were within reach?

Will stories be told

Of a love so strong

It extended days, months, years

And outlived all phases

Of angsty adolescence?

Will stories be told of wild hearts

And sing-song voices

Exclaiming rebellion at the top of lungs?

Or will we be remembered

As quiet souls that sat in silence

Observing through twinkling eye

As others travel our road,

Do we warn them?

Or do we let them go?

Katrina Thornley is a nature poet and novelist that resides in Rhode Island. She has two poetry collections currently published, a novel, as well as a short story anthology. Her poetry collections "Arcadians: Lullaby in Nature" and "Arcadians: Wooden Mystics" were inspired by a local park and life in her small rural town. You can find them on Amazon now!