When We Were Young

"Those long, warm, sunny days you think will never end. Lots of time to waste. Why make plans? You've got today. Tomorrow can wait. Then somehow without noticing, the seasons move on and suddenly you're in the shadows, looking back. Dark days are ahead and the summer's gone."

He was just an old man sitting on a bench on the seafront at Whitley Bay. Nothing out of the ordinary. He had a story to tell, but doesn't everybody? His story wasn't anything out of the ordinary either. He'd married, raised a family and was now widowed. He spent most of his time alone and welcomed the chance to talk. He lived close by and came here most days. It had been their favourite spot. On special anniversaries, he'd tie a wreath of flowers to the bench with a ribbon. You often see that don't you? And you wonder who left them and why. Well, this is why. He explained, "When you're old, you don't have enough time left to build memories so I come here and reflect on the ones we built when we were young."