Missing Youth

Have you seen it?

 

Have you seen my missing youth?

The one I've always had?

With no goodbye, it just went poof!

And fled like blowing sand

 

Just yesterday, or day before

I climbed the tallest trees

But now the steps to my front door

Cause creaking in my knees

 

All throughout this place called home

Someone goes to town

Sneaking in while I am gone

And moving things around

 

Is that mirror on the wall

Haunted by some geezer?

That’s not my face, after all

With eyebrows needing tweezers

 

I can hardly reach my toes

When trying, I abort

Some villain’s work, don't you know

That made my arm grow short!

Author's Note

This is what'll happen to ya if you insist on waking up every morning.

Reviews

[Fabian G. Franklin]

I found your missing youth. It's in my baby daughter's eyes. It's just the cycle moving forward you understand, it's nothing personal...we have to grow old...die and leave our thoughts behind hoping someone will find them worthwhile. It's what poets and storytellers do. I think it's a better legacy than many...but children are our real legacy...inspire one and your life was not spent in vain.

[Samuel Dickens]

Thanks, Fabian, You're right, of course. I see it in my grandchildren. Growing old can be a beautiful thing.

[Fabian G. Franklin]

It's easier when you start with a beautiful soul like yours my friend. God bless you and yours.

[Lorry]

Just flicking through your pages for a something I hadn't read yet and glad I found this one.
Why is it that feet are so far away from us that we have to try concertina ourselves into origami, just to put socks on. And don't get me started with toenail cutting! I think the same ghost must have swapped my toenails for something more akin to battleship material.
And yeah, that old guy in the mirror is following me too! 😊

[Samuel Dickens]

Thanks. Old age comes for us all... if we're lucky. I think our maker equipped us both with the same toenail material. Do pedicurists cost much?

[Miss Sharon]

Love all of this write (which I can identify with) and the fresh sense of humor to wrap it all up. Thanks for the much needed smiles today. ~Sharon

[Samuel Dickens]

Thank you, Miss Sharon. Better to laugh about it than cry--right?

[Neville]

Sheeesh sir, dont I just know ya write the bloomin truth our Samuel …. X celently put my friend and true

[Samuel Dickens]

Thanks, my friend.

[john l smith]

It is the mirror thing that is the biggest problem
That sorry sight is quite a fright
Very funny and all very relatable.

[Samuel Dickens]

Thank you. I'm thinking about replacing the bathroom mirror with a picture of George Clooney.

[Annette Pisano-Higley]

Haaaaa! I know the feeling well- am feeling it right now in fact, Sam. I love Mr. Magoo, what a great character. I didn’t quite get him when I was a kid, but I totally get him now. The eyebrows, the arms, the knees- when did they decide to mutiny? Ah yes, then the mirror revolted too. Treason, I say! But, nobody to walk the plank...but us geezers! Delightfully funny and well-penned.

[Samuel Dickens]

Thank you. Yeah, ya gotta be tough to be old.

[Stella Armour]

Hahaha, mine has gone astray as well.

I love your humour , sometimes we have to laugh so that we don't cry :)

[Samuel Dickens]

Thank you. Yes, it's best to laugh about it. (We "well-seasoned" folks look pathetic when we cry.)

[Stella Armour]

well yes it makes the wrinkles look worse :)

[Norman 223]

Stop it Samuel - you're beginning to make me feel old. I enjoyed those little problems 28 years ago, but...... at least you've helped me regain my memory. :-)
Norman

[Samuel Dickens]

Thank you. Judging by your writing, the years haven't dulled your imagination. I've been trying to write something for weeks.

[Kelly Scheppers]

We really do need to feel blessed to have such days afforded to us, when there are so many lives that have been denied such a privilege for longevity. I think this, above all, shows your sense of humor. I mean, if we can't laugh at ourselves, how sad can we be?

Always a pleasure, Sam!

[Samuel Dickens]

Thank you. Yes, with my long battle with heart disease and advancing age, I do feel fortunate to just to roll out of bed each day.

[Kelly Scheppers]

Bless you, Sam. I wish you the best and hope you'll continue to grace these walls at the WC for years to come!

[barleygirl]

One of the best poems I've read about aging! This is fun & playful, yet we old farts know there's a deadly serious note to each of these observations. The strength of your message is in the delightful examples you select & then how you imaginatively portray them: Climbing trees/creaking knees . . . not remembering where things are . . . & best: the geezer in the mirror with bushy eyebrows (for me, it's the long black hairs that sprout on my chin, I thought I just got rid of that one, when did it grow back again so long?) This is hilarious & precious at the same time.

[Samuel Dickens]

Thank you. I'm hoping all the negatives of aging will eventually make us something great like fine wine. So far, I think I'm more akin to old, moldy cheese.

[barleygirl]

You're sparking the idea of a poem in my mind now . . . how can we describe the virtues of aging without falling into the old boring "fine wine" analogy? I definitely prefer a bit of blue cheese on my salad! *smile*

[barleygirl]

Definitely worthy of a re-read! Loved it even more the second time around, a year later, becuz I feel about five years older now! Very playful & sassy (((HUGS))) Fondly, Margie

[Samuel Dickens]

Thank you. I feel about a decade older now.

[James]

This is great. It's fun and telling. Age sneaks up on us, one day we climbing trees and playing in the rain, the next we are trying to figure out where all those grey hairs and wrinkles came from. You joke about your arms getting shorter, I joke about my wife shrinking all my pants in the waist.

[Samuel Dickens]

Thanks, James. Yeah, my wife shrank my pants and hers, too!