Feeling Comfortable with Oneself
by John Herlihy
Most people live as if comfortable with themselves,
Even though they know they are not little elves.
They look in the mirror and what do they see,
Different versions of themselves that are you and me.
Different versions, indeed, as we systematically age,
The days pass us by as we advance page by page.
Sometimes I see an image that I don't recognize,
Someone's staring at me that I despise.
Still, that's me all right that's for sure,
I see familiar traces that I cannot ignore.
Months pass into years with the image now faded,
Life’s river flows onward in waters I once waded.
Finally, I look in the mirror and what do I see,
A much older version of the person that is me.
It's okay I now say to myself, life goes on,
Still being comfortable without feeling put upon.
When I look into the mirror, I see a smile on my face,
The world is all right and I am not out of place.
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Copyright ©John Herlihy
Wednesday 30 April 2025
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Contrarily, Henry David Theroux wrote: "Most men lead lives of quiet desperation."
Many men look in the mirror and see changes as they age that bother them. Many more, here in the United States, with increasing debt and not enough for retirement, look in the mirror and wonder how they will live until they die and pay the medical bills.
But I'm one of the lucky ones who they still say I look 10 to 20 years younger than my age, like my AD photo here, taken when I was 62, 20 years ago. And I feel pretty much the same as I look. Comfortable and contented.
Ron
Perhaps everyone reaches an age that that image in the mirror feeling like it's lying... especially if you're in good health. But, as you say: It's okay I now say to myself, life goes on,
Still being comfortable without feeling put upon.
When I look into the mirror, I see a smile on my face,
The world is all right and I am not out of place."
It's a gift to be able to feel that way. I share it with you.