'Pure Memories' by Chloe Bayliss

Chloe Bayliss is a History and Creative Writing graduate from the University of Hertfordshire. Her poem 'Pure Memories' was written when Bayliss was sat observing the world around her.

CB: "I wrote this poem whilst sitting on a bench outside A and E, waiting for my boyfriend to come back from getting his eye looked at (he scratched his cornea). Whilst sitting on the bench I observed the people passing by, noticing how the joggers were only men, the feel of the wind on my face and the texture of the paper of my book. I had insisted on waiting for him, despite him telling me to go home and look after myself - I waited because I didn’t want him to come out and be alone. Writing this poem sparked feelings I was not aware I had until I took the time to sit and observe the world around me. Only when you become still do you notice the movement of others."

'Pure Memories'

Why must we post everything we do,

Like an obligation

We snap and filter,

Edit and post,

These tailored images cut into a frame,

Trimmed to fit and blend,

Till we all look the same.

Some things,

Some memories,

Moments shared between two souls,

Are ruined by the judgement of a digital jury,

With a tap of a finger,

The unspoken text,

A personal journey ruined,

But the post was still sent.

Why does society fill their feeds,

Sending memes and tweets and bumbles from bees,

Expecting likes and love from friendless faces,

Why do we post what we don’t want to share?

Just because we need to,

Because life expects us to,

Because we are scared to lose the memory.

These memories will not be forgotten,

Or punctured,

Or trimmed,

Or ruined by a figure whose negative spin,

Will fracture those moments,

Seep it with blue,

Poison the beauty of discovery,

Soon,

We will all open our eyes to the explosion of light.

Our memories remain pure when kept out of sight.