As May comes to an end, we’re happy to have recognized our Senior Stars during Older Americans Month. This week, we would like to highlight a poem from resident Edith Samuels, who blazes a trail to reinvention by pursuing her passions and inspiring others during her Creative Writing class at The Kenwood by Senior Star.
Then and Now
By: Edith Samuels
Once upon a time
Nearly a lifetime ago
When I still believed in fairy tales
And happily-ever-afters
When I thought my life
Was an open-ended contract
The ending so far in the future
It wasn’t real
I never thought about my mortality
Time was an undervalued gift
And seemed a kindly and patient friend
Today, after nearly a lifetime
I have learned
Time moves on continually
Regular as a beating heart
And open-ended is not endless
But ultimately finite
There will be a closing date
Unspecified
Unpredictable
Unavoidable
Moving inexorably closer
When did I first understand this?
Was it when I realized
I would not be alive to see Haley’s comet again?
(Strange to imagine one’s absence)
Or perhaps it was when I decided
To renew all my subscriptions to periodicals
For one year only
Never again tor two years
Giving up the pleasure of the savings
Attached to my long-standing previous practice
Time is now a precious gift
A sometimes friend
Always in a hurry now
Past, present and future
Flow seamlessly together
Seemingly in a moment
I feel a sense of urgency
And yet calmness
There is still so much
To learn
To see
To do
To celebrate the importance of love and new life
To make even a tiny difference for having been here
And help create a better, gentler world
Where none are afraid.
I ride on the waves of time
And I hope
