By Don Kenton Henry
A man has to have worked very hard at being this alone
I am asked if this was always my plan
I reply, you mean to inhabit a one person home
To be an island unto myself , a solitary man
It took years to lose the people, friends, pets, lovers and dreams my neglect has cost
Life’s not a ship that goes down with all hands lost
Rather, one by one they disappeared over the side
And were singularly swept away with the tide
I stand tied to the broken mast of a ghost ship adrift
In the dire straits of the Sea of Regret
Lift me up mother wind, lift me up in your arms, carry me home
But no wind, no breeze and no moon appear to see me there
Just the gray fog of missed chances for which to atone
Children at home and lingering romances that weren’t
So many smiles squandered through the miles, precious moments spent alone
I remember what I beg to forget
And forget the feel of things I love to remember
Kisses in June, Dances in December
Memories of the worthy, so easily I dismissed, swirl in the wake of my ghost ship adrift
Oh, how they tried to climb aboard when southern winds filled my sails
But I had new shores to discover and they were lost in the wake of my young sleek seaworthy clipper
And now, far behind they swirl in the eddies and backwater of time
In the wake of my ghost ship adrift
There you will find them . . .
Lovers with arms outstretched, grandpas and grandmas standing in doors
Mom’s house for the holidays
So many knew those were last good-byes . . . so many but I
The scents of ginger bread, warm candles, burning leaves and puppy breath
Perfume on a neck
The sight of more newborn children to replace the vision of old ones in bed for the last time
Then lost to time
Ah, to have sailed so far alone, now a fool tied to the mast, albatross of misspent youth about my neck, no shore in sight
A life adrift in the night
When did I lose my compass
One more storm and take me to the deep
Postscript: “I never let myself stay down too long. Under every rock of a bad day, there is an optimist waiting to get out.” Let this meme serve as a reminder:
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