Anamnesis

by Frederick Manning.

What am I bid for memories, past.
Yesterday?s nostalgia.
What is it worth to know times long ago,
Of success and of failure?

Would they go cheap at the auction sale,
Memory?s panorama.
Should I lock them up, to take them out,
And live again the drama?

I recall the childhood times,
As they were for me.
Gaslight and the warm coal fire,
And Saturday evening tea.

I could tell a wartime tale.
Petrified with fear.
Aircraft drone and screaming bombs,
Then; with the dawn, all clear.

Of the years in Khaki dress.
In for, ?The duration!?
Learn to kill, and darn my socks.
Fighting for the nation ??

Then of peace and celebration.
Kissing willy-nilly.
Bonfires in the streets at night,
And crowds in Piccadilly.

What are they worth these memories clear.
Who would want to know ?
With me they?ll stay, a special view,
Of days so long ago.