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Rite of Passage and Popcorn

Can a man be be both blessed and cursed,
by long memories of combs and curls..
and is there any true penance to be done 
believing anything could be worse? 

The girl of aubern riding fast past my porch
always laughing into the dusk-
still, smile
in spite of myself,   
remembering it just as it was. 
  
Popcorn smell wafting down the cinema hall,
and what's more, thank the lord!  
invited to sit with two college sorority girls 
replete with rice and loaded squirt guns
at the late night Rocky Horror Picture Show. 

Holding hands with the girl nextdoor,
Miss Dear to Heart and friend.
Return to that wonderous world of before-
ah, to be sixteen at Six Flags
again!

Just wish I could remember the names,  
that belong to all those laughing faces...
in fine pigtails and shining braces,
held now, and forever
in a heart's Hall of Fame.
Copyright © | Year Posted 2025

Poem

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Goldsmith Avatar
January 13, 2026 at 10:37 AM
A great write from the first line to the last line. Your first line is, Yes... Great memories are the best kind to have. Hope you have tons of great memories. Have A Fun Day Writing Away..............
Crandall Avatar
January 11, 2026 at 12:36 PM
Beautiful memories! I found myself reliving a few of my own as I was reading.
Dietrich Avatar
December 31, 2025 at 8:36 AM
Happy New Year Eve. Hope to see more poems from you in the future year.
Kendrick Avatar
December 25, 2025 at 4:08 AM
Time passes and things change but memories linger. Thanks for sharing this one with us. Merry Christmas morn to you and your family. Sara K
Dietrich Avatar
December 21, 2025 at 9:23 PM
Oh I love this. It's so rife with memories and nostalgia. I used to write a lot of poems like this when I started out
Dietrich Avatar
December 31, 2025 at 8:35 AM
I have written many poems about lovely memories and popcorn nights with the blended family I grew up with, but mostly these occurred when my mother returned to Iowa and remarried. Here is my second earliest memory if you care to see: https://www.poetrysoup.com/poem/at_the_shore_752271#google_vignette
Theraven Avatar
December 29, 2025 at 7:49 PM
Hello Andrea, Thanks for this. Yeah, seems a few of your poems are fitting, like "My Earliest Memory". New Year soon. -Richard
Hind Avatar
December 19, 2025 at 1:37 PM
Some memories we wish to live again, some not. I enjoyed your poem
Theraven Avatar
March 17, 2026 at 2:40 PM
Yes indeed Paige, thank you. Happy Saint Patrick's Day. -Richard
DiMino Avatar
December 18, 2025 at 4:44 AM
Poignant, heartfelt write. The youth I wish I had had. Early rock-n-roll; Platters, Lindy Hop -- good times. Yep. Miss my youth.
Theraven Avatar
December 25, 2025 at 10:43 AM
Thankyou for this, Listening to The Platters, pure Doo-wop gold. Must tell ya, I enjoyed reading "The Poem" on this fine Christmas morning. Wishes for a merry one for you and yours. -Richard
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