Photo Album


Flipping through this old photo album
Filled with so many pictures
Snapshots frozen in time
Memories caught on paper
I see all the hugs, the funny poses, the laughter
And I remember life that way
Because that’s what the pictures say
A loving family
Showing a grin with dimples in the cheeks
The trace of a wrinkled up nose
A warm hand over the shoulder
We were all happy then
Because that’s what the pictures say
Never a frown, never a tear
Only smiling faces going on and on

And it’s funny how we forget what we don’t want to remember
To agree with the pictures, and say we were happy
Covering the hurt with a smile
And there is no reminder
It’s easy for our minds to mold the past
To make it agree with that perfect idyllic setting
We create our own world of pretend
To escape the reality of our pain
The sorrow
And sadness
Running so deeply beneath it all
Hidden behind the front of a smile and the guise of joy
But were we joyful at all?

The pictures say we were
But if that’s true, why are there scars
That can’t heal, and pain tucked away
Into a corner?

I want to bury it all and believe in those pictures again
Even though my heart is heavy
Carrying around the burden of sad reflections
A bottle of tears
And bandages holding my pieces together

So I try to reconcile the truth with the fiction
To push away the bad and remember the good
But I don’t know what’s real
And I’m not sure what to believe in
Anymore


© Nicole Whaley 2003


3rd place winner, Free Verse, Over 20 Lines
Tanana Valley State Fair 2004