THRIVING Melanin Family Magazine November 2018 | Page 12

An original poem set to folk music to bid
farewell to the old.  Whether it be friend or foe or
the end of the old year, auld lang syne – for the
sake of old times – is a quick reflection of things,
people, and events gone by. Least we forgot to
reflect and journey back in time to those
moments that made us laugh as well as those
that made us cry.
But, what is reflection?  In short, it is the act or
state of casting back a light to recall a specific
image or event. And New Year’s Eve, that 365th
day of the year, when reflection becomes most
relevant is the time when our mind reflects and
we take a look back and envision a new insight
on those things that could have been, should
have been or would have been if only we could
have heard the echo of our truth, seen the
image of our future, understood the
considerations of our past or felt the pride of our
present.  On New Year’s Eve we don’t seek
absolution for our sins but instead make
resolution for our souls..
We resolve to do better for the sake of others.
We resolve to be better for the sake of 
ourselves. Yet, when the clock strikes midnight
and all the sky's ablaze with sparkles and
colored lights, flashes and stars and stripes,
someone begins the first stanza to a song – for
the sake of old times – and the melody catches
on and all that we have just resolved is lost. As
we join hand in hand, arm in arm, cuddled
close at heart, we dim the light and close our
eyes to the brightness and our ears to the
joyous noise of the bonds of love and
friendship, joy and peace and we sing to have it
never again brought to mind.
How is it that in one stroke of midnight we
make a conscious choice to forget the moment
of our first kiss; when we didn’t quite know
which way to turn our heads so our foreheads
collided and we laughed until our stomachs
ached?  At the stroke of midnight, we choose to
forget the scent of an admirer’s fragrance, that
left us breathless in the wake of their presence
but vocal enough to tell them how they made
us feel.  At the stroke of midnight, we opt to no
longer remember the sound of a loved one’s
laughter, which has been molded to our
memory to forever live within us even though 
TAMKEA "TINY" HARRIS
AFTER