The Cloud

It first appeared in early teens

When hormones ran amuck

And adolescent angst caused great distress

A cloud, so high and thick, came down

Intended, though I know not why

My precious childhood memories, to supress

Those carefree times of innocence

Were shrouded in the gloom

Beyond that dark and baleful apparition

Remembrances of better days

Obscured by a pubertal haze

A moribund, constrictive imposition

I battled hard to clear the fog

And glimpse those distant shores

A destination way beyond my reach

So mired was I, in troubled thoughts

Marooned, alone and helpless

On some ravaged and uncharted foreign beach

But after forty years or so

The cloud began to clear

And memories of childhood came in sight

And oh, how wonderful they were

Such warmth, such bliss, such pleasure

A self-affirming blessing, from a sacred inner light

Too late, alas, for me to thank

my parents, long since gone

A stalemate set in permanent suspension

Another flaw in nature’s plan

No blame on either side

For these things are far beyond our comprehension