Exploring the world

with the bravado of youth

we traversed days with intention

I still feel the heat oozing from hot pavement

as we logged miles on flimsy flip-flops

aggressively moving toward

no place in particular



I remember the rush of dancing on the dark side

meeting at that old bridge to grab bottles left just underneath

gifted by boys not much older

I remember the sweet burn of whiskey that anointed my throat

like a magic elixir only I possessed

I remember not remembering as one day

blended into the next during those endless summers



Bonded by circumstance, we three

strangers in a scary world seemingly different from what we knew

Together we faced each day

swapping secrets and silly notes

immersed in the business of discovering

who we were while laying foundations

for what we would become



I remember the exhilaration spurred on by that weekend retreat

slipping my watch into my sock as the powers that be

deemed it contraband as they held out their hands

I remember how we sang, we sang

abandoning inhibition only to embrace exhibition

I remember “Friends Forever” as our anthem

Still brings a smile to my face



Time’s dusty memories can’t dull the edges of old stories

when they’re penned with new ink

And as we continue our explorations

now on divergent paths

I have to pause to thank you

as I remember my old friends

I remember




photo: Pam Martel McNall

prompts: AZ Humanities, MadVerse, Discover WP