Sketchbooks

by Marc Evan

My outlet for creative energies and a place to take notes.

A veil that I could hide behind.

The protective shield between me and the world!

But still, the lens through which I see.

A constant companion:

From subways to mountaintops. Baseball games to bar rooms.

Doctor's appointments, wedding occasions. Concerts halls and street corners.

Museums, amusement parks, foreign cities, and my own backyard.

Within its pages, I document, and doodle. I paint. I play.

I write, and record, and also I save.

There are shelves filled with them.

They come in all sizes.

A library of memories, so long past.

But flipping through pages, I remember so much.

A flood rushes back. A wave crashes in.

Hear the sounds.

Picture the visions.

I taste the food and all of the drinks.

I feel the buzz. And I remember each sting.

Someday, I'll be long gone.

My hope is, these ghosts,

May someway live on.