Echos and shadows

Two images from the past in both of which I am standing, absorbed in thoughts, and aiming my sight at the far distance remain lively in my memory: In the first one, I felt sadness and hopelessness and in the second, I felt happiness and hope. I was 10 years old in the first and 18 in the second. At both times, I decided to keep that moment alive in my memory and pledged to remember it for the rest of my life. I still do.