A Collection of Stars

Like stars reflected in the water I gather you into my hands -

that precious past since crystallized into remembrance;

little lights flashing in my mind's eye, like fireflies at twilight's edge.

I hold you close, place you on pedestals, wipe away the accumulated dust,

anything to preserve that glow of nostalgia; the 'happy times'.

Every season the shelves get more and more crowded,

the dust more tedious to keep up with.

And yet I visit each one still, holding up a candle

in hopes those stars might continue to shine.

Time passes, and some stars fade out of sight,

some pedestals crack; a natural erosion of age.

But sharing this bounty with you, this gathering of memories,

makes it so that even those fading lights

never completely dim.