As I lay here against the breeze
Memories invade my thoughts,
Shaded under the palm trees
Brushing sand from my shorts.

So many things I want to say
Can't find the words to express,
Nothing uttered turns out rightly
So just bottle up in my chest.

Children playing on the beach
Their screams pierce the air,
My, what joy they are having,
I thought, absently brushing my hair.

They don't know what lies ahead
One day, happiness is kept aside
And they will recall the lost youth
That has been swept away by the tide.

*Photo by Yuliya Kosolapova from Pexels