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| Old Man, Cockroach Catcher |
It has come.
It has played with me,
led me to believe,
nay be certain
(that maybe through
some past good deed)
I had escaped its wrath.
It has come.
Mapped me out,
history etched
in every line and furrow.
It plays with me
still,
slows me down,
mocks me
with its laughter lines.
It has come.
I will bear its tired skin,
its aching limbs,
its tired bones.
I will relent,
give in graciously,
but beg it earnestly,
please, please, please,
please
leave my mind alone.
Anna :o]
(I wrote this after discovering the beginnings of crows feet on Saturday night...)
(I wrote this after discovering the beginnings of crows feet on Saturday night...)
Entered at Open Link Night at dVerse Poets Pub – thanks dVerse!
Entered at The Poetry Pantry at Poets United - thanks Poets United
Entered at The Poetry Pantry at Poets United - thanks Poets United
Image used with the kind permission of the Cockroach Catcher at flickr. (The Cockroach Catcher Blog can be found here.)
24 comments:
oh i will beg the same way...if it just leaves my mind alone i will be happy...that is one of the things that truly scares me...all too real...smiles.
yeah...most important is to stay young on the inside...still being able to think quick and not getting afraid of thinking new thoughts..
such a solid and authentic plea
Somehow I can't buy that the beginning of crow's feet marks the inception of old age! At least not from my perspective where I'm really there--aching bones and all! :0)
Welcome to boomer country ...and there are plenty of us ... and we beauitful ... inside and out ... Yes. Love, cat.
Stay young within and it will shine on the outside :)
My Grandmother said as long as she could touch her toes she was young. She was still touching them at 91... so she died "young".
I've promised never to dye my hair - so far so good.
The hoary head is a crown of glory, if.... Proverbs.
Thank you for these kind and welcome comments folks.
Off now to do more reading at dVerse and Poets United - oh there is so many to read!
Anna :o]
PS Victoria: old age has been with me for a while but until now has left my face alone!
I have earned every one of my wrinkles...the map of my life:)
My elderly mum always says when her bones are creaking and she's in pain "don't get old, although the alternative doesn't bear thinking about!"
The flow of this poem is delightful to the ear. The message, one we all eventually grasp, is presented in unique light. A good write, this, and a pleasure too!
We can't escape our crinkly ones! Being at teenager at heart sees off the fear of wrinkles......then again, I wouldn't say no a face-lift if I had the money!
Nice flowing lines and a sweet earnest request at the very end! :)
Leave my mind alone , very impressive
I like it thank you .
This more or less follows on from your previous post. You write so well it encourages thoughtful responses.
My mum, in her nineties suffered a stroke that ruined her body, including speech, but left her mind as sharp as ever. Having spent two years trying to make what was left of her life as pleasant as possible, I do wonder which is worse; ruined mind or ruined body.
This little limerick was dredged from my days back then, after she moved to a nursing home when my sister and I could no longer cope. I visited her in her room most days, and on the way, observed patients who seemed to never leave their beds.
This might be a bit unfair, but after several times when Mum's vain attempts to summon help to get to the toilet and she suffered the indignity of wetting her bed (she was not incontinent), I did realise that patient needs are sometimes secondary to staff convenience.
Untreated disease of the brain,
Proceeded to send him insane.
The house doctor said:
'Just keep him in bed,
All else is too much of a strain!'
PS: Despite her condition, she took charge and transferred to another home where she was much happier. That is a story I must tell!
Ooh, this is brilliant. There's no escaping age is there. 28 this August. I already repel college women. It's all downhill from here.
Writing poetry trains the mind, and so does socialising and interacting any which way you can, like having a blog. My favourite is doing maths, add up any numbers you see anywhere to a single figure, and when you are used to that, try substracting instead, that's a bit harder because you may end up with a minus sign. Then there is Algebra of course, or puzzles like you do Anna ... just keep it active, and hope
:-)
Meet junior within and it give shine on the part :)
I think we would all say Amen to this beautiful poem. With its one proviso we will bear it whilst it's preferable to the alternative!
well-penned meditation on ageing... we none of us will escape it.. and why should we? It's all part of the natural cycle of life.
well-penned meditation on ageing... we none of us will escape it.. and why should we? It's all part of the natural cycle of life.
Cheers for your welcome comments folks and Luke you are right as aging is a natural part of life – but I wish to forgo memory loss (other than that that is considered ‘normal.’).
Stafford: ‘… ruined mind or ruined body’ – something to ponder on indeed. Sad to hear of your mothers predicament and I realise the difficulties for all of you and her frustrations. I am glad that she was able to transfer to another home and I would like to read your story…
Your limerick is very apt (unfortunately) for many situations and patient needs are sometimes seen as secondary to staff convenience. Should not be so but sadly true.
icyHighs: sad to hear of your decline at such an early age… :o]
Sam: my mind is always alive – I cannot switch it off! One favourite pastime is to make words from the letters on car number plates – strictly consecutive order and I also have a little personal list of computer games (logic based) to start of my mornings…
Anna :o]
Words on number plates, good idea Anna, I'll take that one up myself. I like this quick and easy sort of thing :-)
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