Thoughts About Memories And Their Place Poem by Randall Vanlandingham

To die is to dwell in the past.
To live means keeping the past alive,
Bringing it to bear fully on the present,
Shaping a broad and complete future,
No matter what that puzzling future brings.

This is the place of memories,
Of character molded by accrued experiences,
Decisions, teaching us to take appropriate paths,
Roads that lead into the current day,
Extending its travels through tomorrow's hopes.