Sense of Age

By Richard Wiener

These are poems from the vantage point of old age.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Xlibris US
• Release date: Sep 29, 2017
• ISBN: 9781543453911

Richard Wiener

Richard W. Wiener is a retired high school teacher and athletic director. He has two children and three grandchildren, and resides in Glenview, Illinois. He is a die-hard Chicago Blackhawks fan and, during hockey season, can be found at the United Center. He is also a member of the Chicago Public League Basketball Coaches Association Hall Of Fame. He is also the author of “Check Please...& Hurry,” a book about dates gone wrong, which is already available. You can also find him at www.richwiener.com.

Book preview

ALL SOULS DAY

A Richard Strauss song caught me unawares.

It was my father’s favorite song.

My father who, dead long ago,

Could share his feelings only

Through music that he loved.

How sad, now, to contemplate

All that I missed from him

While yet he lived.

How sad, now, to contemplate

All that he missed from me,

The unrequited love expressed,

Too late now,

Only through tears.

October 24, 2015

AN OLD FRIEND DIES

An old friend dies,

And it’s as though an ancient bridge

Connecting our two worlds collapsed.

One more who knew us when we were still young

One more who shared our memories,

Who validated our past, is gone.

A mirror that reflected back to us

An image of perpetual youth

Has shattered, and mere shards

Remain. In that one instant,

We take an onward leap

Into the vision of our own demise,

Perhaps unconsciously wishing

To see our friend again.

September 3, 2016

AUTUMNAL REFLECTION

As autumn leaves, once red, do not revert to yellow,

So age, once come, does not return to youth.

Age has its compensations,

And autumn fruit may still taste sweet,

Yet nowhere near as sweet as summer fruit.

And, yes, the old may still enjoy the wintry days,

Out on the slopes, blinking at snowflakes,

Watching the kids tobogganing,

Smiling as they recall

Their own childhood insouciance,

The many, many years gone by,

The bittersweetness of those years

Long past, and not returning ever.

October 21, 2015

BETWEEN THE LINES

It’s not so much what people say,

How they present themselves in