Sometimes... Poem by Nosheen Irfan

Sometimes...

Rating: 5.0


Sometimes
Open the book
Long forgotten
Some old book
Resting in the shelf
Beneath a pile
Of pain, dreams and longings
Open it
Dust it off
Run your finger over it
Smell it
Inhale the mouldy air
Of the time
That has passed
Since you last opened it
Open it
Feel it resurrecting
Beneath your finger
Open it
If you know what it is
To be alone.

Nosheen Irfan © 2017

Saturday, December 9, 2017
Topic(s) of this poem: alone,book,memories,old,old memory
COMMENTS OF THE POEM
Shakil Ahmed 09 December 2017

Yes, sometiime books remove the loneliness, Your expression is alluring and touches the heart, thanks for sharing a beautiful poem.

1 0 Reply
Subhas Chandra Chakra 09 December 2017

Inhale the mouldy air Of the time That has passed Since you last opened it Yes Ma'am, old books retain the sweet old fragrances of the past memories and with a delicate touch they reveal it. Loved the theme very much. 10++++ for the poem shared. Subhas

1 0 Reply
Daniel Brick 10 December 2017

Those two closing lines - If you know what it is / To be alone - are very moving: they made me read the poem again a different way - holding the book was now an attempt to hold time itself, the past and keep it from leaving because the memories are too precious to lose, and reading that book of past experience will ease the loneliness of the present. This poem hides sadness within beauty.

1 0 Reply
Unnikrishnan E S 10 December 2017

Hi Nosheen, Wonderful poem. Books are man's best friend (of course, woman's too!) . It happens with me often: In the middle of a sleepless night, I go to my bookshelf and pick up a book, the first book my finger says yes! Look at the book, its name, author.... You are transported back to the time you read it last... (Contd..)

1 0 Reply
Unnikrishnan E S 10 December 2017

Part 2 You remember some quote from the book, look for it in the book, fall in love with the book once again. You start reading it from the beginning... enjoy every word.. Your mind recreating the past when you read it first or last.. (it is the choice of the mind; you do not know what and why..)

1 0 Reply
Suresh Kumar Ek 04 September 2020

the resurrection of letters

0 0 Reply
Muhammad Ali 28 December 2017

throwing pebbles, counting stars, searching absence, living in the past... very nice poem

1 0 Reply
Jette Blackstone 14 December 2017

When my grandmother was old and suffering from dementia, she did just what you described....the experience brought back a world to her. There is something so very comforting about holding a book in the hands, the feel and scent of it...the memory of the good time you had with it. Open it. Wonderful Nosheen! :)

1 0 Reply
Mj Lemon 13 December 2017

Very moving work, Nosheen. This reminds me that sometimes it is constructive to revisit a painful past. Without doing so, moving into the future may be complicated, perhaps impossible. This one goes to my favourites list.

1 0 Reply
Valsa George 11 December 2017

The old book can revive a lot of memories and those memories will be a sweet company in the hours of loneliness! Never stash that book away in a discarded pile! Though sad in tone, this is a great write, Nosheen!

1 0 Reply
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Nosheen Irfan

Nosheen Irfan

Lahore, Pakistan
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