Will I Be Forgotten? Poem by Michael J Williams

I'm afraid that I'll be forgotten
Like so many men before
Who recalls their great-great ancestors,
From ancient times of yore?

If I'm not able to produce a fruitful life
My memory is certain be lost
I'll have to rely on my previous lives
To pay my ‘recognizance' cost

What was it, that I was, so many lives ago?
Was I a brave and fearless soldier, in a patriotic show?
Some generations before, was I a most prolific bard?
More time advanced, a King did I doth guard?

Somewhere in between, was my attire an ebon cleric's robe?
One time I think a tamping rod exploded… and severed my frontal lobe*

I've lived all through history, it's stored genetically in my brain
To be remembered for it (of course) , is really all in vain!

*reference to Phineas Gage