Once I had a sure sense of myself
Able to pull on a continuous thread
Stitching together people and places
Into the unbroken timeline of my life
Who I was and who I am defined by
What I remembered from early childhood
And so much that has happened since
All collected as moments stored away
But memories are subject to change
Unreliable as witness accounts
Sketches redrawn with each retrieval
Influenced by the present moment
Now I am not so sure I believe myself
When I review the story of my life
Realizing much of it is a plausible fiction
Revealing the character of the author
Thinking about the events and scenes
That made an impression good or bad
No longer just inside myself having feelings
Wondering about the other people there
What they experienced interests me
Wanting to include their perspective
Considering the interpersonal dynamic
How we affected each other
Questions that cannot be answered
But informative just by being asked
Speaking to who I have become
Someone older and more introspective
