The aging process is well maintained

Taken at the J. Paul Getty Gallery

The aging process is well maintained

unlike these morning knees that ask attention
while I climb upstairs to the kitchen;

or these hair follicles that have dried up,
leaving the crop thinner by season,

indicating, finally, there will be no harvest
down at Billy Victory’s Barber Shop.

And the small gland that swells in the dark
and sends me on nightly missions

of such shallow intrigue
is hardly worth my tantrums. Now,

along with dry eye, I’ve developed floaters:
small vitreous detachments that swim

in and out of view, creating misty
landscapes where this phrase should be;

or where the back of my hand should be, which,
contrary to the idiom, I know less and less about.

But sometimes when these eyes look out
under the blue genuine glory of sky,

I’m startled by clarity — taken
to some other side, where Van Gogh

is still painting his swirling saffron stars
and joyous purple irises with that single white

shepherding one,
and I grow grateful for all the little absences

that may yet
                         help me see.

13 Comments

  1. Happy belated birthday, Steve! You continue to inspire and enchant with both your personhood and poetry. Brendon and I are grateful to have you in our lives!

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