May 29: Offically Old

Today I am officially old. Unofficially,

of course, I’ve been old for some time;

signs have been there for all to see—

presbyopia, baldness, forgetfulness

strange spots on my skin, bones popping

and cracking every time I stand up.

I like to think that with farsightedness

comes the ability to see the big picture,

to not be so caught up in close-up things

that I lose sight of what I couldn’t see

when I was younger and more impetuous.

But it turns out that one is not bestowed

with insight automatically with age;

rather, I have had to work each day

at seeing more deeply into things,

into the place where clarity is elusive

but where paradox and mystery

can be held with a kind of grace

that is just there, like air and gravity.

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