as time passes
a new year awaits
a birthday just passed
but maybe with age
too often I find myself
looking backward
rather then forward

thinking what if I had done
this rather then that
what if what happened
hadn't happened
why did I make
the choices I made
but usually reality takes over

the past is after all
just that, it has passed
can't change it
try as I might
and besides I survived
the mistakes I made
and even the mistakes others made

and whether I'm
the man I hoped to be
I am the man
that I have become
so dwelling on the past
is pointless
the future awaits

but again age intervenes
thinking 10 years
into the future
is also pointless
I saw an ad
where are you going to
be in 10 years

but that's not the
point of life I think
where am I going to be
tomorrow
what must I do
to not only survive it
but to achieve something good

Life is a series of challenges
and yes we do carry
the baggage from  the past
our past has made us what we are now
but tomorrow will make us
what we can be
day by day, one step at a time

'Twas the day after Christmas
and all through my room
came house keeping quickly
she came with her broom

She cleaned my room
with the greatest of  ease
and with great  results
as quick as you please

I write this to prove
I can rhyme if I choose
and I can do it
without any booze

I know it's my style
almost never to rhyme
I can do it but
I don't take the time

when I write my lines
I let my mind run crazy
and I really don't care
cause to rhyme I'm too lazy

but this experiment
really must stop
cause I know this poem
ends up a huge flop

to rhyme is a chore
which I have done before
 but for me it's a  bore
so I'll do it no more

promise........

a quiet day
nothing pressing
nothing that had
to be done

I no longer
look forward
to the holiday season
as it has come to be known

the commercialism
most have lost
the original meaning
of Christmas

the crowds battling for
this year's items to give
finding the new hot item
that which ads say they must give

but in the given
they assume
that they will
also be receiving

I insulate myself
from the hubbub
I prefer the
peace and quiet

so that I
in my solitude
can contemplate
the true meaning

the simple
message
of the angels
a child is born

Night approaches
the lights
begin to fade
but memories
are still
bright lights
some from
a great distance
shine the brightest
some of
the lights
I cherish
and others
I would like
to forget
but all
are with me
still
some for enjoyment
some for instruction
some are painful
but the sum total
of the various lights
are the sum total of me

winter is coming
it's right around
the corner
my 70th year is
also right around
the corner

the one
that is the winter
I approach
with some
degree
of dread

but the other even with
my disablities
even with the pain
I'm looking forward to
with anticipation
with renewed optimism

I have weathered
both many winters
and many years
but the winter
I still dread
but not the years

there are still
things to learn
wisdom to be gained
maybe also
wisdom and learning
to be shared

so I'll bundle up
I will face the winter
again, with dread
but the birthday
I will look forward to
with anticipation

Thanksgiving

not what it was

not what it's become

certainly not what was intended

It has  become a day when we stuff

ourselves at the dining table

and then coward around the TV

to  watch NFL football

most don't give thanks

it's just a day to relax

eat til we burst

and wait for "Black Friday"

and all the sales

in the big box stores

shopping for Christmas

and braving the crowds of shoppers

Christmas

not what it was

not what it's become

certainly not what was intended

winter is upon me
both by season
and by my age
and quite frankly
in my opinion
both have come too soon
of course there
is little I can do
about either
I suppose
I could
move to a warm climate
but I am fine here
after almost 70 years
I'm used to the weather
as to the winter
of my life
this I can do nothing about
Except to enjoy
to live what
I have left

besides
it beats
the alternative

Yesterdays

at my age 

far too many

tomorrows

at my age 

maybe not enough

but where do i place my focus

yesterdays

or tomorrows

both have their allure

yesterdays have old memories

both triumphs and defeats

but tomorrows

ah tomorrows

the future awaits 

but then me thinks

I shouldn't live 

in yesterdays

nor should I live

for tomorrow

what might never be

all I really have is

today

and that should be enough

at my age
memories
both old and new
flow over my mind

when I was younger
it was more like
a small lake
or even a mud puddle

but as i get older
it's a flood
whether the Niagara falls
or a whirlpool in the ocean

I can't tell
but one thing I know
some memories sink to the bottom
never to be remembered again

and others
some old, some recent
keep popping up
like a buoy

refusing to be forgoten
a mixed bag
some bringing joy
fond memories

but others
memories I'd love to forget
but all reminders of
the life I've lived

but the joy
the sorrows
the regrets
and even the silliness

they all formed
the person
I am today
the bonus is I survived