Shadow Riders

When you reach a certain age
In the autumn years of your life
Reflection becomes your dearest friend
Where fond memories are rife.

You think of many loved ones passed
And the days of that long ago
Of things now vanished into life’s mist
Where ghostly shadows go.

These vague shadows gently bubble
Into our cognizant thought;
Retrospection of time that stands still
And what our lives have wrought.

While we’re riding in the shadows
Between consciousness and dreams
We remember times of golden days
When we were young it seems.

We ride there and we reminisce,
Playing old movies in our minds,
Where lovers dance and young children play.
Memories can be kind.

Sometimes a simple word or deed
Causes these phantom thoughts to rise
A comforting presence that brings peace
Or comes as a surprise.

Nostalgic recollections
Shelved, stored and categorized
For the visiting shadow rider
In these mists of past lives.

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