“One Hundred Years of Solitude”
Life changing when read at 20
Now lies abandoned in the charity shop
Evacuated along with all her other books
Her ‘things’ gathered from travels worldwide.
The colours of Holi, the pride of the Durbar Parade
The too-hard-haggled-over Mayan embroidery
Are but memories in the distant sands
Like Xpu Há and Tulum
Lost to the trundling cyclones that ripped through her mind.
Each new carers browses her memory book only once
No one to tell them where the pictures of deserted island beaches were taken (Mexico)
Where were those bustling marketplaces (India)
The endless sands seas (Sahara) and moonlight waters (Marquesas)
Their location and significance as uncomprehended as the Easter Island Moai
Her Heritage is now preserved in a few pages
recording her one hundred year journey to solitude.
© Sheila Ash, 7th January 2018
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