Oban Street

Not so far away, except in years.

20 becomes 30 becomes 40, and so on.

 

What changes the heart?

Springsteen talks of an oak tree:

 

roots of his childhood, seeming strong

and for ever. If I, like him, cruised

 

past my old house, what would

I see: a tree I once played beside

 

in my yard, too, perhaps.

His Oak is now gone; childhood

 

is gone; and adulthood appears

a long, vast road, driven on memory.

 

Poem © Mark Pirie, 2018