Always Remember.. Poem by bryan wallace

We cannot forget the past -
It's all around us.
Sitting at the platform in Coleraine Station,
The modern diesel locomotive sits at odds
With ornate Victorian iron-work decoration.
The smell of hot oil, coal and steam -
an earlier age - still linger in the air.
The deafening sound of the shrill steam whistle
Still echoes from Victorian brickwork.
The dark-suited station master -
Semaphore flags and pocket-watch in hand,
Still walks the platform with his self-important air.
The engineer with oil and soot streaked face -
Still plies his grease gun - takes pride in his machine.
The lessons learned from those bygone days -
Many dead ends - money wasted - people hurt - people killed.
Each tragic and painful rail disaster -
Has improved the service we use today.

We cannot forget our own personal past either -
It's part of us.
Our early childhood memories - good, bad or indifferent,
Our schooldays - supposedly happy but rarely so,
Scars to the heart from an early romance,
Wet behind the ears and treated like dirt -
Our first job - far from satisfactory.
Old friends and loved ones - dead and buried -
Gone but never forgotten.
The illnesses and injuries over the years -
Gradually removing our youthful freedoms.
We may bury our failed dreams, bury our loved ones -
But we cannot bury our past -
Cannot undo a single thing -
No matter how much we might want to.
But like the early railway engineers - we can learn -
Not just from our past successes -
But perhaps learn more from our past mistakes - even if they hurt.