Pensieve

Memories.
They're an odd bunch, really.

First, there's all those facts:
Exam details that disappear within a week;
Indelible information about yourself -
Name, address, first pet;
And bits of useless trivia,
There to be dredged up in a pub quiz ten years down the line.

Then, your proper memories:

Things you feel you should remember,
Events that you know happened but you can't visualise -
Your first day at a new school, meeting your best friend.
They're things I wish I remembered.

Then there's things you didn't want to forget at the time:
The diary entries penned by a stranger,
And the knowledge that today's
"I never want to let this go"
Is tomorrow's
"Why did I care?"

And the humiliations -
You mind insists on retaining them,
Reminding you of something that no longer matters,
But still stings.

Sweetest of all are
The things you thought you'd lost.
And then a friend's story, a word, a song
Unlocks the door
And you revisit that long gone day.

However you try to control it -
By recording who you are now.
You can't.
All you can do is relax.
Don't worry -
You're never going to forget what shaped you.

I hope.