A Cautionary Tale

I can’t remember dreams I had
When I was just a child,
Try as I might these memories
Have long been deftly filed.
They’re hidden somewhere in my mind
Beneath a lake of bills,
Surrounded by the towering might
Of albatrosses’ hills.
But even if I somehow shed
The burdens that I bear
And climbed the mountains to the top,
I know I would not dare
To take the drop and plunge right off,
Trusting I will fly…
Into the lake my dreams have gone…
Without this trust, they die.

Written for mindlovemisery: Prompt 15: Childhood Dreams

52 thoughts on “A Cautionary Tale

  1. Brilliant.

    Takes one to know one

    1. I assume you are a cat then. đŸ˜‰

  2. Reblogged this on NebulaSonic and commented:
    reowr original author

  3. I love this poem! I don’t quite know if this is what you’re going for but this poem reminds me that I have always had pretty practical dreams that I could remember. From mom and teacher to chef, lawyer, or entrepreneur. Anyways, sometimes I do struggle with this topic of dreams and how to achieve them and not let them die like i see others do. Hard concept but great poem!

    1. Practical dreams are definitely the most practical ones to pursue. Less practical ones, while still pursuable, require more trust and faith to achieve, imo.

  4. Beautifully expressed but sad. I tend to be less practical more spacey and abstract. My grasp on reality is much less firm than my grasp on dreams, I can’t seem to trust the real world, balance is a hard thing

    1. I love your spacey and abstract way of writing. Balance is probably one of the hardest things to achieve in life, in my opinion, as it requires constant calibration and awareness of one’s condition and surroundings.

      1. I agree with you whole-heatedly we are always growing and changing and the environment and people around us as well, Flexibility/resiliency is really important. I can be kind of an old man sometimes I want to eat at 5 pm no matter what lol Thank you so much I love your writing too!

  5. That poem is beautiful, imagery of how our dreams may have been as a child. I try hard to remember mine at times but they are all filed away somewhere. Maybe I will meet them one day

  6. Beautifully written and makes me rather sad.

    1. Ah, don’t be sad. It is merely a warning of what can happen if one doesn’t trust in their dreams.

  7. As a child, my most recurrent theme (I can’t remember details) was that I could fly or levitate. I later discovered that this was a common escapist dream. I became an alcoholic for about 25 years, and when I got sober (I was 37) I took up skydiving for 20 years so I could make that dream come as close to true as possible. Have that trust!

    1. I used to have flying dreams often too, but I’m scared of heights, although I never was in my dreams. They were quite exhilarating. I kind of miss them. I would give skydiving a try, but it would probably make all my whiskers fall off.

  8. It’s sad that we lose our dreams, but then I think we always keep the stronger ones filed away or as you put ‘deftly filed’.

    1. Yes, it is sad, but the nice thing about dreams is that you can always create new dreams at any time.

      1. that is true. Dreams are like phoenix’s, they rise out of the ashes of dreams that die đŸ™‚

        1. This comment ended up being filed away as spam. Not sure why that happens to some people. Love the phoenix analogy. đŸ™‚

          1. hehe you weren’t the first person to tell me my comment had been filed as spam, silly word press. Thank you i was slightly tempted to turn that comment into a poem đŸ˜›

            1. That would be brilliant in a poem. đŸ™‚

  9. Loved this, i hardly ever remember my dreams

    1. I wish I could remember my dreams too.

  10. Brilliant! clapping clapping and hoot hoot toot toot!

    1. Hoot hoot! Toot toot! Am I an owl or a train?

      1. your a cat silly

    1. Ah, such a nice scratch behind the ears! You are so good to your furry friends.

  11. It’s great to have dreams but one should be practical. Most of us are buried with practicality and dreams can help you fight through the muck. Jump of that cliff…soar in sky…at least in your dreams..

    1. That’s very true. Dreams, even unrealized ones, can provide respite from the daily grind.

  12. I miss my flying dreams too. Although, occasionally, they return and remind me of what is possible. Lovely poem, Cubby.x

    1. Ah, you’re lucky that they occasionally return for you. Maybe I just don’t remember them like I used to. Take me with you next time. đŸ˜›

      1. They’re a bit scarier when I’m not actually sleeping, just drifting. But, I’ll see what I can do.:)x

  13. P.S. When is your book going to come out? Simon’s taken a bite from the pie. You?x

    1. I believe you ate all the rhubarb pie. I’m still waiting for another one to fall.

      1. Well, let me know when it does.I’d like to buy that one too.x

  14. I love the imagery. “To take the drop and plunge right off”

    1. Glad you liked it! đŸ™‚

  15. I believe you were writing an epic poem of angels, dreams and saving the world…this reminded me of that…Having two mythical goddesses around tends to help being able to dream…I do remember some of my childhood dreams and a fes nightmares too…interestingly, as I’ve grown older, I rarely have nightmares, bu I do dream of a particular city I’ve never been to, and sometimes of an old house full of lots of rooms with junk and treasures. Oh…by the way, I loved this poem, you have such a free-flowing way to write!

    1. There’s something deliciously creepy about dreaming of old houses and cities that you have never been to. Sounds like great writing fodder. đŸ™‚

      1. They give me pleasure đŸ˜‰ I’ve yet to write about them though. Sometimes I wonder how my mind has picked up on them…

  16. Lovely Cubby this was not what I was expecting from you on this prompt…instead you went all serious on me đŸ™‚ And since I’ve written some rather dark things lately…I went on the silly side đŸ™‚

    Having said that i do love the cautionary reminder to follow ones dreams!

  17. Well done! Though personally I think that you must spread your wings and fly from that nest of security!

    1. The very essence of practical dreaming. I am inclined to agree with you. đŸ™‚

  18. I get short of words when describing your poems. Infact I can’t do any justice if I try to…:-)
    You are gifted cubby. Touchwood.
    I always had very distinct dreams…I remembered people their clothes and even surrounding…if I could dream and forget for a while…

    1. Sometimes I don’t want to wake up from my dreams either…but then I end up sleeping for 12 hours.

  19. Very true. We’re not afraid to dream. Trusting we will fly to—as you put it—the lake our dreams have gone, it’s the hardest part. I’m still pursuing my childhood dreams, though. I wanted to be a hero. Now I’m a writer.

    1. A hero…such a wonderful thing to want to be and achievable in so many different ways. The heart of a hero finds a way to express itself in your writing.

      1. Thanks a lot. Yeah, anybody can be a hero since we all have what it takes.

  20. You really craft your poems well. Rhymed and metered poems that have
    substance are hard to come by, and seem to be a lost art. I’m impressed by your poems.

    1. It is sad to see how much metered poems have fallen out of favor to the point where you would never see any published in a reputable literary magazine. I am hoping things will swing back towards the gentle swaying rhythm of rhymes that echo of the greats. You honor and humble me with your words.

  21. Very thought provoking. I can remember a few of the sleeping dreams I had as a child but now I wonder what happened to the rest of them. How were they important to my being, if they were important at all? If they were, then why have I forgotten them?

    1. They are only as important as we make them out to be. If they were forgotten, most likely they were not too important. If they were important, then maybe there was a deeper reason for forgetting. I’m glad you found this piece thought provoking. đŸ™‚

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