Sorry, I Must Have Forgotten (Reprise)
A Poem by Tom Shaw
This “reprise” acts as a follow-up to a poem I shared over a year ago now. While it is not strictly required for you to read that piece before this one, it is highly recommended, and you can do so by clicking on the post linked below:
Ignorance is not like bliss when its implication hits brutally and painfully. I forgot you were human, berating your sheepishness, ignorant of my cruel hiss. Sorry, I must have forgotten. And now I am here to remember. I’m the one who pushed your head deep into the sand of guilt, cowardly and heartlessly. I saw you as one lesser, leaving you in yesterday feeling not enough was said. Sorry, I must have forgotten. And now I am here to remember. Let me let ignorance sleep and take the road to within gracefully and carefully. There I neglected my self, berating my foolishness, ignoring my need to weep. Sorry, I must have forgotten. And now I am here to remember. I’m the one who pushed my head deep into the sand of guilt, cowardly and heartlessly. I saw me as one lesser, leaving me in yesterday feeling not enough was said. Sorry, I must have forgotten. And now I am here to remember. Henceforth I’m taking my heart-reigns so I can lead by example.
Sorry, I Must Have Forgotten (Reprise) - A Poem by Tom Shaw
This piece was written in response to several people commenting on the original poem to say that they’d love an exploration of the “remembering” that is required to overcome the collective amnesia of humanity to how to live authentically. Ask and ye shall receive.
To coincide with this new release, I am happy to announce that my latest poetry book, Go Forth, Butterfly! is now available as a digital bundle with both an audiobook and an eBook. If you would like to buy a copy, physical or digital, it would support my work massively - you can do so by clicking on the button below:
I also did a livestream last week where I read a few pieces of the book. If you weren’t able to tune in at the time, you can find the recording below:
In a way, completing this digital bundle and book feels like a closure to this first chapter of my poetic efforts in life. For the past few years, I’ve been gradually writing and sharing my poetic explorations of the world around me and sharing them through these posts and online, in small chapbooks like Go Forth, Butterfly! and increasingly in-person. It’s been a big phase of discovery and experimentation, and through it I’m honoured to have created pieces that have resonated with so many people.
My callings going forward are to:
Combine poetry with other mediums of art
Craft longer narrative pieces that help to keep alive some of the best myths, legends and teachings of the dying empires of the Western world
Pursue more opportunities for face-to-face and offline poetic explorations
As a result, I don’t foresee any new poetry books like my previous efforts anytime in the near future. I will, of course, continue to share poems with you here every other week, and sharing other musings or recordings I’ve done with others in the interim. I have a few exciting things in the pipeline already, so watch this space.
Thank you for taking the time to read this piece, and for being a part of the journey so far. I look forward to sharing more with you soon.
With gratitude,
Tom
This is such a powerful piece, thank you for sharing. Looking forward to reading more of your work.