He Believed in Folktales
Silver hair ruffles
As a gust of death ardently blows,
Skin and bones
Arthritis and moans,
Knowing the best days have gone
Simply hardens his woes.
Strides now shuffles
The body wonders if it’s out of date,
Hands shake, skin is opaque
Ordeals eating meals,
& dentures can’t even tackle what’s on the plate.
Full of hate,
Or too empty to care?
It’s hard to say from that cataract stare.
Zips and buckles
The well used fingers barely cope.
Can’t hold soap,
A heart beat from a stroke
Retirement home a matter of time
Hell, just grab the coat!
Motor neurons struggle
O.A.P, Old And Pathetic,
A suffering diuretic
Dulled on anaesthetic,
Half human half bottle of pills
Even the smiles’ decrepit
And it’d take another lifetime
For him to fully accept it.
His will is buckled
Never had a kid, it near kills him
His memory fills in,
A flickering film in,
His mind of another man’s wife
Who bore his child that wore his smile
Imagining the next of kin,
Never having touched, it’s wrinkled skin.
The book hits the floor open, on the page,
Of Grimms’ Rumpelstiltskin.
2013 repost © LionAroundWriting
LionAroundWriting 
The rhyme scheme here is interesting and works well to provide a nice flow to the poem 🙂
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Thank you 🙂
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Great piece. I liked it very much.
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Thank you.
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This reminds me of a write I did months ago. INside every old person is the young person they once were. This poem was so vivid. I love your description. Bravo.
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Thanks for your feedback lonelyauthor.
You’re right on. It must be tough getting to a certain age being unable to do what we once took for granted, remembering how things once were.
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I imagine it is tough. -Andrew
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Sad, yes, and something we’ll all eventually have to cope with. What many younger people don’t realize is inside every old person is a young one wondering what the hell happened.
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hhaha well put 🙂
A frind of mine, in his sixties told me that same thing some years ago, that he didn’t feel any different in the mind than when he was a teenager. I found that quite inspiring.
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When she was approaching 70, my mom told me, “I look in the mirror and wonder who that old woman is staring back at me; I still feel16 inside.” 🙂
Since I am now 62, I now know very well what she meant. A person can either choose to feel old and sit around on their ass and wait to die, or they can enjoy all life has to offer with a young spirit. The choice is theirs.
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*Deep breath* This is so sad! Reminds me of my grandfather. I am missing him today and you’ve added more reason to it. 😢
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Sorry to hear that.
It was partly inspired by my own grandfather and older relatives.
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Memories of his and my grandmother are living within me. 😳
It’s a reality of life, I just hope they are blessed and happy wherever they are. 🙂
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Arthritis is scary 😦
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Its no joke, nor death
Thanks for your comment.
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This is so beautifully sad. I loved it.
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Thank you Lisa, appreciated.
I look forward to reading some of your stories 🙂
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