-- New Again --

by John Herlihy

Old emotions now cold,

Sad days lost back when.

Yet many things gone old,

Now back as new again.

Happiness can go stale,

Brief moments that age.

The wonder of life’s tale,

Finishing as an aging sage.

Never to happen again,

Miracles lived as a child.

Buried way back when,

All as a first thing wild.

Does a flower grow old?

Spring itself forever lives.

Old stories newly told,

As innocence that gives.

Nothing is like falling rain,

As fresh as the new dawn.

Divine mercy made plain,

As a tree in spring reborn.

Breath of life as air fresh,

Seeing for the first time.

Old/new as intimate mesh,

That tells a story sublime.

Many decisions as tortuous,

No one wants to be wrong.

Some choices serendipitous,

Indeed, here I am, still belong.

Old body, the mind still new,

Seeing as if for the first time.

Fresh wind never before blew,

Always fresh until the last time.

When I do take my final leave,

May I remember myself as young

No need on my grave to grieve,

Only echoes of a life well-sung.

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Copyright © John Herlihy

Sunday 3 March 2024