The Summer I Carry Forward
The Summer I Carry Forward
Ballad Form: (4 stanzas with ABABC rhyming)
The morning sun would greet the day,
With laughter dancing on the breeze.
Each hour quietly slipped away,
Through shaded walks and towering trees.
The heart remembers days like these.
A simple meal, a welcome smile,
A hand to hold, a song to share.
The smallest moments, all the while,
Became the treasures tucked with care.
Love lingered gently in the air.
The miles we traveled mattered less,
Than those who journeyed by our side.
For joy was found in happiness,
Not measured by the changing tide.
But by the hearts that opened wide.
Soon autumn paints the hills with flame,
And daylight yields to evening’s glow.
Yet every season leaves its name,
Within the soul where memories grow.
The best of summer comes to go.
The Summer I Carry Forward
(Haiku Form: 5 syllables-7 syllables- 5 syllables)
Summer slips away
Warm memories light the path
Autumn smiles ahead
August’s 2026 Poetry Lesson(s):
Ballad and Haiku poems
As another summer begins its not-slow-enough journey toward autumn, I find myself thinking less about the calendar and more about the moments that filled my summer.
Some memories came from family vacations. Others came from celebrating milestones, enjoying live music, discovering local treasures, sharing milestones with family, laughing with friends, and meeting people whose paths crossed mine for only a moment but left a lasting impression.
It’s easy to measure a season by the number of days it contains.
It’s much harder to measure time by the memories it leaves behind, and then the ones you carry forward.
This summer reminded me that life’s richest moments aren’t always the ones we plan. Sometimes they’re found in a conversation, a song, a sunset, or simply being surrounded by the people who matter most.
What will you carry forward from your summer?
I hope they are memories worth revisiting.
Author’s Note: Years measure time. Memories measure life.