“Gene, You’re Slowing Down”

Hello friends, There will be a point in life that you begin to measure what you want to do against what you can do given physical limitations and seeing death getting closer. Hug those you love, care for yourself, help others. Here’s a poem from my new book, Interbeing, available through PayPal here on my site, Amazon, and the publisher Wipf & Stock. Thanks, Gene

 

“Gene, You’re Slowing Down”

It’s a kind way for my wife to tell me
of new changes on my home stretch.
I hear code words,
but anxiety makes me resist.

Okay, less driving at night
on rain-slick streets, any dim streets.
My finger just caught the lip
of a McDonald’s coffee, coloring
this poem like an old manuscript.

She feels it deeply,
but maybe too early for me,
shutting down before necessary,
the struggle between care and surrender.

This spring my Kwanzan cherry of 20 years
tries to talk to me from its fewer blossoms
and damaged core, saying farewell or almost.

Wise teachers of spirit advise slowing down,
pulling back from full speed
to detect inner wisdom.

Yet their counsel seems easier,
retreat to re-enter, rest
to run back up the hill.

But the Kwanzan knows a harder truth,
no more hikes to the peak,
no more excursions far and wide,
the cycle is ending.

Embrace the beauty of each day.
Love lessens fear.