Memories are little peepholes

For glances into our pasts,

Joyful and sad, tumultuous and sedate.

We flush them out,

Often one by one,

Sometimes in clusters.

Oh, there are so many,

Some to be cherished and and nurtured,

Often taken out

To be dusted,

To be polished, 

And to be placed

In a treasure chest.

Unwelcome memories have 

Uncanny urges to escape

To be reopened and to provoke

With pinches and punches,

To be reexamined,

To wipe away the hurts and pains

And, finally,

To be reconciled and embraced

As one more experience

To be placed as  moments

To complete the panorama

Of a life fully lived!