Memory of You

By Ryan Mimna

Grains of sand on the beach
Thoughts of yourself
Innumerable to count
But known in itself
Beautiful are our souls
Even if they can’t define themselves

Life is as turbulent as the seas
The world, often corrosive,
Shaping the shore as it sees fit
Salt water erodes seascape
Until we can’t recognize the beach
Ourselves
Where do we fit?

In those sublime moments
I pick up the sand
It slips through my fingertips
Like an hourglass of time
Tens of thousands of grains
Innumerable to count
My life I think of you
And as time shapes us
Grains of sand on the beach
Innumerable to count
A beauty within ourselves
I always see in you

_____________________________

Ryan Mimna lives in Philadelphia and works in the finance industry. He served in the U.S. Army from 2011 to 2015 and, after completing the Ranger pipeline, served with 1st Battalion, 75th Ranger Regiment, including multiple tours in Afghanistan. After leaving the Army, he finished a bachelor’s degree in political science at the University of Pennsylvania, where he began writing and later turned toward poetry. For The Havok Journal, he writes reflective pieces and poetry, often centered on fear, meaning, and the inner life.

As the Voice of the Veteran Community, The Havok Journal seeks to publish a variety of perspectives on a number of sensitive subjects. Unless specifically noted otherwise, nothing we publish is an official point of view of The Havok Journal or any part of the U.S. government.