Remember This

Remember This 12/27/2012

The great white storm
Has dropped its gray drizzle
Coming down in frozen silver sheets
All over the house
And all over the streets.

I sleep under the covers
As long as I can
Hiding in the dark
To forget who I am.

The fever kept coming back
For three and a half days
Chilling my bones
And burning my head.

The words came to me
In rapid fire succession
Perfectly phrased
And flowing.

And I tried to remember them
As I drifted off to sleep
But I still lost them
In the dark
And in my sleep.

The fever broke
And I am better
But all I thought about
Is forgotten
And lost.

Other men have lived
And other men have died
But how much more
Could they tell us
If only we knew.

They too had dreams
And they also loved
Even if tragic
And even if doomed.

They aspired
And I am sure they tried
Not any worse than you
Or me.

There is much unsaid
And much unrecorded
Unsung and unheralded
Forgotten and lost.

But they left us something
Priceless and enduring
The experiences of a lifetime
And the world they knew.

In philosophy, literature, and history
In culture, values, and deeds
A treasure worth remembering
All laid at our feet.

The gift of knowing
The good and the bad
Because there is nothing
New under this dead sun.

A gift of knowledge
About the horror of control
And the creeping hands of the few
To manipulate the many.

About the violence of dictators
Worshipped as Gods
Murdering millions
Rendered defenseless
And dumb.

We could stay asleep
And pretend everything’s okay
Sucking up all the messages
Predictable and sanitized.

Like good little lambs
And we keep our heads down
Always belittled
And always berated.

But for me
It’s time to kick off the covers
And it’s time to dust off the dirt
Shaking off the sleep
Of weeks, months, and years.

Because it isn’t about me
But rather those I love
Brought into this world
For me to leave behind.

Others can say what they want
And they can do what they will
But in the end
The truth remains
The same as before.

So I shall rise
And do the best I can
Fighting long after
All is hopeless
And lost.

Leaving the best thing
I could ever give
The gift of inspiration
And remembrance.