What I Had Forgotten – A Poem

I was walking

home when a

young man crossed

my path. He

looked vaguely familiar.

He beckoned to

with an outstretched

hand and, despite

my fear, I

followed. He stayed

a few steps

ahead of me

as I tried

to catch up

to him. He

let out a

peal of laughter

as he ran

on. As I

chased him, the

sky began to

fill with clouds.

I saw him

duck into the

trees of a

forest and went

after him, not

giving the trees

a second glance.

I didn’t know

why it was

so important to

catch him, I

just knew that

I had to.

He moved further

into the trees,

making the shadows

rustle and shake.

“Hello?”

I said. Moving

further amongst the

trees, I noticed

that they had

grown taller, their

bark blackened by

soot or smoke.

I reached out

a finger and

ran it along

a nearby trunk.

My finger came

away covered in

oil. I had

a moment of

foreboding, a second

of fear that

sliced through me.

Then he spoke:

“Don’t be afraid. I can feel your fear.”

I watched him

step out from

behind a tree,

moving as if

walking was difficult

for him. When

he moved a

bit further, the

shadows slid off

of his face

and I could

see him clearly.

“Besides, you shouldn’t be afraid of this forest.”

He said softly.

“You created it after all. Don’t you recognize it? You made every tree, every blade of grass here, every leaf and pine needle.”

I turned and

took the forest

in, really looked

at it. I

recalled a forest

that had ruled

me, that had

hidden me away

from the world.

That had almost

taken me from it.

I touched another

tree trunk and

felt it thrum

under my hand,

it’s pulse matching

my own heartbeat.

I looked at

the man and

finally saw him

for who he

was. He was

myself, only a

few years younger

and so sad

that the sadness

emanated out of

his skin, making

the grass rustle.

“Why did you bring me here?”

I asked him.

He shrugged nonchalantly.

“Have you forgotten what this month is? What this month is the anniversary of?”

I shook my

head at him,

not understanding what

he was saying.

“It’s your dark month.”

He said softly.

“It’s the month you almost succumbed to the darkness, the month where our life changed forever.”

I looked at

him, remembering his

face, the sound

of his voice.

I remembered myself.

“I’m not that man anymore. I’m not you. This month was the start of an even longer journey.”

I said to

him as kindly

as I could.

Tears began to

slide down his

cheeks and I

watched as they

left black marks

on his cheeks,

as if someone

had drawn on

him with a

fountain pen. He

looked at me imploringly.

“You forgot me. You left me here inside the forest. I’ve been here all this time.”

He said, almost

screaming at me.

“How could you just forget about me? About what this month was to us?”

I shrugged, trying

to convey in

that small gesture

that I had

meant no harm.

“I’m beyond happy now. I’m content with my life.”

He looked at

me, his eyes

burning into my

skin. I could

feel the heat

of his stare.

“So you’re going to just leave me here? It’s so dark at night and there are things that move in this forest.”

I shook my

head and held

out my hands.

“Come here.”

I said and

he took my

hands in his.

I took hold

of my own

hands. Slowly at

first, but with

growing intensity, I

let the light

that now resided

inside me flow

out of me

and into him.

As the light

flowed into him,

into who I

had been, he

began to glow.

The light started

to break through

his skin, cracks

light appearing like

spider webs across

his face and

neck. The light

became brighter, too

bright for the

dark forest. The

trees started to

melt until there

was a river

of oil around

us. He began

to shine brighter

until he was

brighter than the

sun. He looked

at me and

there was a

smile etched on

his beautiful face.

“Thank you.”

The light grew

so bright that

I had to

look away. When

I turned back,

he was gone

but the river

of oil had

turned into something

glorious. It was

no longer dark

and filled with

shadows. With the

sun upon it,

it was instead

full of rainbows.

I walked home,

my heart happier

and my spirit

filled with light.