Hallway to Nowhere

Tag: Getting Older

  • Conversation With My Father (Poem)

    I ask him,

    “Why did you not tell me

    The happenstances of getting older?

    That the months and years would steadily speed,

    While the amount of time and energy

    Needed for any one task would increase?

    Or that the ability to dance would diminish but never the desire?”

    He replies,

    “You remember, surely, that I never had the chance to learn these things.

    I died a younger man than you have been for many years.

    So you are indeed solitary on this journey,

    Though I tried to give you what tools I could.”

    I smile and take his hand.

    “As long as I can remember you, I am not alone.”

  • Life As It Is (Poem For An Aging Dog)

    We grow older together, you and I.

    Our gait has slowed,

    And hills are harder to climb.

    But we still dance in sometimes wild abandon;

    You can manage occasional astounding leaps.

    We spend our days quietly now,

    With me at my writing or with a book,

    You always at my side.

    I know that when I do go out,

    You worry and fret more,

    So that we are both relieved when I return.

    Always, always in my heart

    Is the knowledge that you are aging faster.

    I try to fill our time remaining

    With all the love and gratitude I can give.

    You have made life beautiful and wonderful and joyful

    In ways I never anticipated.

    Thank you, my beloved companion.