Leaf Picking Poem by sydney conteh

I walk through your neuron pathways
Skipping past myelin sheath rocks
And looking at grey matter trees
They were once so green
But now they are bare
Branches with no leaves
Some leaves carry memories
The first I love you
That reverberated in the air
That was the best song I have ever heard
The memory of the first time we danced
Hands intertwined like vines on a tree
Eyes locked onto each other
Looking at forever
But now they lay on the floor
Your shaking hands cannot pick them up

I know you feel the emotions
Must be hard
Being so happy and not knowing why
You smile at the sight of me
Not knowing my name or why
Almost like your past life follows you
Dementia may have removed the memories
But your roots never die
The way we made each other feel
Is still there
And all these leaves
I have kept them safe in my fondest memory

So that if dementia weakens its grip on you
I will give them back to you
A small-time to see the person I fell in love with
And if its hold tightens
I will forge all those memories in my smile, my hugs, my kiss
So that you can see and feel all those memories
I know it will only get worse
Soon there will be no more leaves left at all
So I guess I have more leaf picking to do