Why Is It Poem by David Harris

Why is it when someone tells you something
it keeps repeating itself over in your mind?
It is a question I have no answer for,
but it does it all the time with me.
A very dear friend told me something
that happened in their earlier years
and ever since then it keeps
repeating itself over in my mind.
I keep wishing I had been there at that time
to help them through their ordeal,
but I wasn’t and I didn’t even know them then.
Therefore, why is it now
what happened to them
bothering me so much now?
Could it be I recognise something similar
that happened within my family
and I was unable to help
all the torment that they went through?
Why is it that it bothers me
when I know happiness they found.
The question bothers me for an answer
and that answer I cannot find.
If someone knows the answer,
could they please tell me
and put me out of my misery,
letting my poor heart rest for a time.


30 October 2009