Nostalgia

Retrospective imposition of meaning
Mitigates most tragedy
Created the gravestone industry
Manicures away painful memory
In a distinctly human way

Of our many inventions
This is a keystone trait it is
Created the human race it did

(as we know it today)

We bury the dead, we continue
We do not forget, we keep them with us
We remember, the best we can
We venerate our dead, it helps us continue

This tradition. . .

What it means to be human
Described and remembered
Is what defines us as human
Preparing from memory

An act crucial to survival

To remember anything
Not hard wired
   A face, a pattern
   A scent, a poison
   A lover, an enemy
A story, shared timelessly
So as to transcend time
(in our own way)

Floating in between frames of reference
Unstuck from the moment
Predicting what comes next from the last. . .

That is human, this is human
We are all of us gamblers
Mercenaries of the abstract

                  in the flesh

       Every second past is a hand to be remembered
        Every second ahead is a thing to be guessed
(from the past)
like a ghost in reverse
dead alive,
                   (time is not on your side)

dave

Author's Note

Reviews

[Rebecca_Rose]

My mind is seriously blown, the topic, the content, the wording, the FREAKING concept of it all is restoring my faith in humanity as we speak. People actually do wonder past the point of sanity, dare to wander, dare to get lost That is being human. You rock.

[Davidgeo]

I actually wrote this a couple months ago but didn't post it until very recently. In a very indirect way this is inspired by the Hatfield and McCoy feud. Thanks for the props... I'd be lying if I said it didn't mean anything.

[MaximumFlight]

Absolutely beautiful. This is a wonderful piece :)

[Davidgeo]

That mighty kind of you to say. Do you really have a top hat like the one in your profile pic?

[MaximumFlight]

I have one similar to it. It has a black and purple rose and a black veil. I also have a steam punk micro top hat.

[Veronica Staehle]

It is interesting there is the sense of past and future always somewhat present in all moments. How it seems to be human nature to apply meaning to things whether it might be for recognition purposes or remembrance. I always find the best moments in life are those within the current second; but it's always enriched by appreciation of where I come from, and motivated by potential possibilities. Brings the question of: where is it that our lives exist in this abstract experience? Your line "Mercenaries of the abstract | in the flesh" is very eloquently said.

[Davidgeo]

Sometimes I get high and watch movies from the early 90's and late 80's. If I knew the type of impact the s**t I watched growing up had on me I'd have watched different movies as a kid. Though I'd like to think drinking a bottle of wine while watching "Big Trouble in Little China" is one of those things I'd think is awesome no matter what. Thanks for reviewing this thing by the way, feedback is always nice.

[jacob erin-cilberto]

once we let meaning into our lives...it is like an imposition in a way...a guest that gets old quickly---maybe there is too much pressure to be remembered for something....maybe as poets we need to have that security that our words will make an imprint---something lasting...we don't want the end to come too soon, but we want to do enough so that we won't be forgotten...
i liked what Plath said once...near the end of her life, she wrote to her mother and said "i am writing great poems, my best stuff, they will make my name"---yes, we are concerned about that...and know most likely our name won't be made until after our deaths...yet we fear the death...We are gamblers aren't we?
so glad i came across this piece...it is quite good.

j.

[Davidgeo]

Thanks Jacob. I like how you describe meaning as an imposing guest that gets old quickly. We must be careful what meaning we let in, that stuff can define your character and be very difficult to change. For some reason now I can't stop think about lunatic scientologists and how they still believe in objectively crazy s**t an otherwise normal person would laugh at... and now I'm thinking of Donald Trump's political followers. Ugh, depressing.

[Poetic License]

This is simply stunning.

Your opening stanza caught my attention and held it mercilessly throughout the piece.

Retrospective imposition of meaning
Mitigates most tragedy
Created the gravestone industry
Manicures away painful memory
In a distinctly human way

Retroactive imposition of meaning - just holy wow. Your phrasing is perfectly abstract. I am blown away by your ability to write in broad strokes, hurling paint cans at the canvas and still have everyone see "a dog" out of squiggles. Masterful. Positively masterful.

[Davidgeo]

That's some mighty kindly things of you to say. I always have been a fan of Jackson Pollock's artwork, so it's nice to hear I sometimes write like he paints.

[KWP]

Yeah interesting isn’t it how some choose to bury the dead (as for me, take me to the flames - no need to take up space in an already overpopulated planet)

I’ve thought a lot about that, and how people fear death and at the same time have an overriding desire to be remembered.

I think we miss the point, is humans. We want to leave an imprint on the here and now, we want everyone to know, we came, we saw, we conquered. We have forgotten the flow and try in vein to hammer the breaks in the hope that time itself will come to a standstill, if only to remembered and then it’s only to validate that’s we were ever here at all ....

Surely the next frontier is worth every last ounce of energy and gusto we forgot to use up here in this life ... when I visit, I want to be fully charged and ready for the connection to one, to All - again.

I love the ending to your words here. Made me smile, even if I wasn’t supposed to C

[Davidgeo]

I think I would like to be buried when I die. But without a casket so my body could quickly fertilize the soil and help provide nourishment for whatever life happens to be around, just like I did when I was alive.

And I will never understand why some go to such extraordinary lengths to immortalize themselves. It's obviously a fools errand, in time none of this will matter; but it has probably motivated the pursuit of some very beneficial things for humankind. Medicine, architecture, engineering, etc., etc.. The Egyptian pyramids are a fine architectural, engineering, and astronomical example; i'm sure the mummification process stumbled upon some medical advancements as well. A few millennia of total bullshit religious practice's turned out to inspire some very amazing things that would otherwise not be undertaken. Being religious is probably an evolutionary advantage in respect to a group orientated and social culture. I'm pretty sure I would have been executed before I turned 10 years old if I lived back in those times.

[JackValor86]

i think this is my favorite of your poems so far, i was half expecting (after reading the title) for this to be about nostalgia for media but this is more powerful, for who would you be without your memories
i know i can't tell someone how to write a poem because its subjective but i tripped over this line
"We are all of us gamblers" it just felt like a stutter while reading but a great poem for sure.

[Davidgeo]

You're probably right about the 'gambler's' line. I need to fix that. I'm glad you liked the rest of it.

[Nipplegrinder]

There is much to like in this piece. This is deftly imagined. The title had me expecting something about a subject I revel in, and led me to a completely different place. I enjoy this.

[Davidgeo]

Do you have pets?

[Nipplegrinder]

I have a pet.

[Davidgeo]

Is it a cat?