Dried Memory

Upside down it waits
Dried bundle of stems and petals hanging 
Under harsh incandescence
No longer meant for this place 

Blooms given near full year past 
For challenges accomplished
Targets met with allies that Sunday afternoon
Recognized success now surely long forgotten
By the others who played their parts
While I still remember how it felt 

Kept lovingly hanging far too long   
Returning to them on occasion   
Silently desiring preservation
Revisiting satisfaction felt then
Wondering if it will ever repeat

How hard the once soft become
With neither cares for my troubles
Nor joys for my wins any longer 

I remind myself
With kind compassion
There have been, and will be more
Days like that one
Memorable, like that was
Connected, like that was
Harmonized, like that was
Days of accomplishment and recognition
With no bitter aftertaste

Meanwhile, those dried husks once beautiful
Long since withered and stiffened
Quietly crumble and fall
At my lightest touch

January 21 – 23, 2025

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(Related: Concept explored in haiku format)