The Balance Beam

picture by pinterest

The Balance Beam

this night the Cheshire Cat moon is grinning 

low in my East horizon             the witching hour

beam spends its night waiting

never sleeping             silent it

keeps worn and time oiled skin 

warmed and waiting

like a Budhist Monk in meditation

how easy it use to be     lithe body     bold will

climbing aboard

i am old .... how am I expected

to mount once more the 4 inches 

like a cliche'

i use to stand stork like all day

without a tremor            

walking was a fresh breeze of spring

leaping splits, saltos and hand springs

all the apparatus working and silky

but this morning finds me       creaking

              cracking 

once more the limits of a falling body

....... i climb on board    do my job though

 

inside 

          

all the wobbling incapability 

has a mask and stink of fear

but

all goes quiet .. 

the glass pond ... 

the loon's cry

the lotus 

like the Monk

I would think I were dead 

if not for my own 

Cheshire

Cat 

grin.

10/16/2020

E. 

 

Author's Note

Reviews

[John Alexander McFadyen]

Wow an amazing way to tell of the changes as physical deterioration creeps into once well oiled bones. This has such a visual impact as you take the beam as your focus and your flow and word choice gives this an inevitable determined sadness. Bravo from one working out to try to stave off the knackers yard!

[Einstein Noodle]

ahahaha yes .."stave of the knackers yard" for sure .. ahahahha i am larfing loud over that right now .. i am keeping it in me nog .. and throwing out my .. "keeping the wolves at bay" :))))))))))))))) knacker yard indeed ... thanks so much for reading and taking time to review .. always a blessing my friend
E.

[andrew mitchell]

Yes old age the final frontier to go where no old age has been before and how the aches linger! Nicely written Gene.

[andrew mitchell]

I was never good at gymnastics in fear of hurting my family jewels and the associated pain that comes with it so I feared the balance beam when i was young, had to hold back from such dangerous activities and preserve for future fun chasing girls and women in pink skirts! :)

[Einstein Noodle]

ahahahaha ...pink skirts of course :))))) yes .. i wouldn't get up on one for any amount of glory ... i just hung out in the local pool hall ... where all young men knocked their balls around :)))))))) i can hardly believe that no women were aloud in them at that time. ... thanks always for your time and reviews my friend .. i like how you say it .. and would add... every day an age where age has never gone before ...
E.

[Dhara_Ditzy Kat]

Something tells me you got the cream and the cheese too! The spirit within is the key, my dear E! As long as it burns bright there's nothing you cannot fight. Age is just a number then!

[Einstein Noodle]

i love you response to this Kitty Kat! i agree 100% .. and as a matter of fact ... the cream and cheese are both waiting in the fridge for my next wondrous joy of partaking :)))))))))))))))))))))
E.

[Dhara_Ditzy Kat]

Ah the joys of life!
You're welcome dear E!

[Einstein Noodle]

:) ....................

[emmajoy]

In the past have often arrogantly said, Age is a number.. but dear goodness as time passes, tht becomes a load of rot. The body had its day a few years ago, thought i could cope but now the brain's got a mind of its own and we often argue! Your writing inevitably touches on the humourous and does so here, but the tongue in cheek suggests invitations to those that perhaps alreadt know the Truth. So, will re.read and learn, learn and re.read then.. find the nearest face.cream and monkey hormones that don't cost the earth. Have to add, cos i do like to blather.. that if deterioration is as illuminating as your words, who cares about aging.. Academic funtime and more than likely ageless. x

[Einstein Noodle]

ahahaha yes Emma .. who cares indeed .. its a fine thing to fight for all we have for as long as it remains .. brains included .. in the end we will relinquish all ... all but our souls ;) in aging .. i find residing there occupies more and more of my portion of the days ... love ya ... thank you for reading and enjoying and sharing your thoughts ..
E.

[Fran Marie]

life surely is a
balancing act
and time is fleeting
seems we try to
refine it into making
some sort of sense
if only mind and youth
could blend huh?

but by the time we figure
it out in our minds our
youth is gone and our
bodies have fallen.
Cest'la vie

wonderfully penned
and expressed

[Einstein Noodle]

ahahaha oui! Cest'la vie! ..but don't forget our inner child, :))))))))))))))))))))) feed and keep it says i .. and we do have in a sense .. that blend of mind and "youth" ... thanks so much for reading Fran! i'm still trying to figure it out :))))))))))))))))))))))))))) please stay safe and well out there ... it is a balancing act for sure .. and seems very fleeting longitudinally speaking ...peace and joy!
E.

[Fran Marie]

you're welcome
friend..keep well;

[Lorry]

I don't know how you got in my head E, but couldyou make sure to lock the door when you leave 😀
Similar thoughts have been on my mind in the last few days. I'm usually wide awake by 3am but have had to shift pattern lately and miss gazing out at the moon and stats at silly O'clock from kitchen window. I so laughed at your cheshire cat smile, as it made me realise I must look crazy to anyone wandering by, looking upwards smiling like a loon.
It does have such a pull on us, having that moonbeam planet so near and yet so far.
I just smile and think "Well, it keeps me off the streets and keeps me sane(r) than if I slept through it all.
Other medical opinions may be available on request though 😀

[Einstein Noodle]

well Doc ... i do have this pain in the arse whenever my neighbor goes by ... can you help with that?? :))))))))))))))))))))))))) we are wake brothers (forgive the pun) i am also usually wide awake at that time ... the moon has been incredible this month tho the past 3 days have been rainy and the cloud cover too thick to see her..Oct. 31 will be a blue moon .. always a celestial event eh!? glad you could relate so fully with this one .. we aren't alone at all are we!? love and joy brother!
E.

[Rose]

This is an amazing depiction of getting old. It is sweet and yet humorous! I love it so much! Thank you for sharing and have a day as splendid as yourself! ❤️

[Einstein Noodle]

thank you Rose ... you have me blushing and touched me ol' heart ... such a gracious comment .. so happy you enjoyed the experience and took time to review .. see you at your place soon .. right here at the Cafe' .. you caught everything i wanted to express.

[Sami Khalil]

At least you can be a gymnast of the mind(hence your name Einstein of the South) and not the body and this poem shows how agile and great thinker you are. The poem was realistic and touching for we are all headed that way, waiting for our appointed day, but with hope of the afterlife. We do cherish those active stages of life that we lost. We do contemplate the lessons learned. You are imparting that to us as we speak sir.

[Einstein Noodle]

thanks for reviewing Sami ... yep .. we are all headed in that direction aren't we ... the thing is ..if we wake up ... get up ...right?! :))))))))))))))
E.

[Sami Khalil]

Hehehe. So true and well said. You are welcome sir.

[Neville]

these words were simply aching to be recognised and writ ... they have been aching for a while now, but shy .. it used to be that way for me too Gene ..

strong of arm and lithe of limb and with a sense of balance not just in the physical sense, but all ways ... and of course, as a registered kongo zen Buddhist monk myself, I know about such things .. No kiddin, dont it help tho' just a little to know you aint alone ...

Down ya neck buddy you just cracked the age thing here :))))

[Einstein Noodle]

yes it does sir ... and you ... a registered kongo zen Buddhist monk yer self .. i am humbled beyond measure :))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))) slainte mhath ... i am happy to have your visits always
thank you
E.

[Neville]

and I in turn am always happy to visit my friend .. down ya neck squire :)))))

[Ken Simm.]

This goes way beyond just musing about age and it is a cornocopia of beautiful lines that look as if they have existed as long as the component parts of the wooden beam.

[Einstein Noodle]

you've made me day sir! thank you so much for taking time on my pages .. and all your helpful and encouraging reviews .. peace brother!
E.

[Christine Anne Shaw]

Second time round Mr E, my last response got lost in the ether. That beam, represents youth to me and the peak of strength and fitness. I have long admired the efforts of gymnasts to perfect balance on such a narrow bar. And then I ponder on the passing years and reflect on how our bodies take a battering. Creaking bones and sore muscles all come with advancing years. So sad that as our knowledge and understanding of life increases, our physical health can fly out the window. Still, we have no say in the matter and have to learn to live with it and adjust. That Mr E is where you wonderful pen took me on a bright Saturday morning besides the ocean.

Chris

[Einstein Noodle]

ahhhhhhhhhhh i hear the surf and taste the salt breeze .. so thank you sister :) yeah .. we get old .. and creaky :) i have been wanting to write a confessional poem and this is the closest i could get ... i also love and admire the gymnast athletes...i can't believe how much courage it takes to get up there and do the impossible things they do .. i think it is my favorite Olympic sport to watch ... and they do it with poise and such grace ... a worthy aspiration in our hectic and sometimes messy lives eh!? be well .. enjoy that ocean more :)

[Christine Anne Shaw]

The ocean is wonderful, will be returning home tomorrow. Gymnasts have incredible discipline. They dedicate their whole lives to the perfection of performance. Not sure I could muster that dedication to anything. Perhaps poetry and family. Have a great day Mr E:) All the best from this side of the pond.

[Einstein Noodle]

:)............................