TOTAL RECALL

Took a slide down memory lane,
And it was beautiful, I recalled
The times I was raised,
The days we were excited
to run out and play,
The days TV was a luxury,
Video games a distant dream,

I remember the days cars
lacked seat belts, where mothers
had to stretch one arm to act like
one, with the other hand on the wheel,

I remember the day we were
flogged for ruining the woollen carpet with
soil after running barefooted around
the yard,

I remember playing in the rain,
being scolded,
and waking up with a cold,
A cold so bad that I had to
skip school,

I remember the times we dug holes
on the ground to play with marbles,
I can still grasp the feeling, the
moment,

I remember the times we made
Toy cars from twisted wires
and rubber bands,

I recall playing make believe cops,
make believe soldiers with sticks and
crafted guns made from clay,

I remember playing hide and
Seek in the neighborhood,
where one had to go ground
smoking guys from their hiding
places, only for the tin to be kicked
and those already sought to dash
back into hiding,

I remember frowning, and acting all
bratty whenever mom told me to
take forty winks after lunch
“Rest makes one brighter” she’d say,

I remember vividly the 20th century,
the black and white TVs, the hours
spent listening to the radio (BBC),
the payphones; call boxes, the
long talks at dinner tables,

I remember listening to stories
under the night sky around a campfire,
Too bad those days are long gone,
Too bad we live a life by the screen.

~Muzamir