Great men want the four seas. I’ve only
wanted old age to come unnoticed like
wanted old age to come unnoticed like
This . My family together in one place,
kids and grandkids looking after each
kids and grandkids looking after each
other still, I linger out mornings over
koto and wine, the wine-jar never dry.
koto and wine, the wine-jar never dry.
My clothes a shambles, exhausting every
joy, I sleep late now, and nod off early.
joy, I sleep late now, and nod off early.
Why live like all those fine men, hearts
stuffed with fire and ice to the end,
stuffed with fire and ice to the end,
their hundred-year return to the grave
nothing but an empty path of ambition?
nothing but an empty path of ambition?
- The
Selected Poems of T’ao Ch’ien, translated by David Hinton © 1993.
Old – P. Simon
The Human race walked the earth for 2.7 million
We estimate the universe to be 13-14 billion
When all those numbers tumble into your imagination
Consider that the lord has been here before creation
God is old
We're not old
God is old
He made the mold
Take your clothes off
Adama and Eve
- Old, P. Simon
"As a
white candle in a sacred place, so is the beauty of an aged face."
- Joseph
Campbell
_______________________________________________________
Rotation 25,550
That
day that was once only realized in dreams
Of
poet musings and in the songs of sojourning desperadoes
Had
provided evidence of finally being born.
Three
score and ten years in the making
That
recent almost never-ending cold dark night
Slowly
faded into yesterday.
Bright
red bead burning sanctified glow
Calmly
and deliberately peaked
Over
the endless sea’s horizon.
The
third rock’s rotation prevailing again.
Picaresque
hero shaded that unknown glow from blinding his eyes.
Seeing
in the light would need to be relearned.
His
voice too yearned to be recovered and heard.
They
say that some winters are longer than others.
Some
say that wandering forty years in the desert
Before
accidentally discovering paradise
Is
really no big deal.
Many
lost pilgrims never get to reach the River Jordan.
Words
of the quiet one repeated
Like
the song of a wind chime breaking the silence
By
the breath of God.
“The
only real purpose is to discover God…
The
answer is really how to find peace of mind.
That’s
what we are really here for. “
Aging
weathered worn wayfaring vessel
From
the arduous constant journey slows the pace of passage.
Yet
the spirit that set sail in the first place had slowly
Come
to Ulysses’ realization.
The
chartered mission never had the intention to be known
For
battles won or by the size and number of beasts conquered
Or
by the bounty of worldly treasure owned.
The
fortune of the adventure to date
Was
that the desire for possessions
Never
completely possessed him.
“So
far so good”
_________________________________________________________________
My
Back Pages – B. Dylan
Half-wracked prejudice leaped forth,"rip down all hate,"I screamed
Lies that life is black and white spoke from my skull, I dreamed
Romantic facts of musketeers foundation deep, somehow
Ah, I was so much older than I'm younger than that now.
- My Back Pages, B. Dylan
Lies that life is black and white spoke from my skull, I dreamed
Romantic facts of musketeers foundation deep, somehow
Ah, I was so much older than I'm younger than that now.
- My Back Pages, B. Dylan
Old
Friends/Bookends
Can you
imagine us
Years from
today
Sharing a park
bench quietly?
How terribly
strange
To be seventy
- Old
Friends/Bookends , P. Simon
EVERYTHING IS WAITING FOR YOU
Your great mistake is to act the drama
as if you were alone. As if life
were a progressive and cunning crime
with no witness to the tiny hidden
transgressions. To feel abandoned is to deny
the intimacy of your surroundings. Surely,
even you, at times, have felt the grand array;
the swelling presence, and the chorus, crowding
out your solo voice You must note
the way the soap dish enables you,
or the window latch grants you freedom.
Alertness is the hidden discipline of familiarity.
The stairs are your mentor of things
to come, the doors have always been there
to frighten you and invite you,
and the tiny speaker in the phone
is your dream-ladder to divinity.
as if you were alone. As if life
were a progressive and cunning crime
with no witness to the tiny hidden
transgressions. To feel abandoned is to deny
the intimacy of your surroundings. Surely,
even you, at times, have felt the grand array;
the swelling presence, and the chorus, crowding
out your solo voice You must note
the way the soap dish enables you,
or the window latch grants you freedom.
Alertness is the hidden discipline of familiarity.
The stairs are your mentor of things
to come, the doors have always been there
to frighten you and invite you,
and the tiny speaker in the phone
is your dream-ladder to divinity.
Put down the weight of your aloneness and ease into
the conversation. The kettle is singing
even as it pours you a drink, the cooking pots
have left their arrogant aloofness and
seen the good in you at last. All the birds
and creatures of the world are unutterably
themselves. Everything is waiting for you.
the conversation. The kettle is singing
even as it pours you a drink, the cooking pots
have left their arrogant aloofness and
seen the good in you at last. All the birds
and creatures of the world are unutterably
themselves. Everything is waiting for you.
-- David Whyte
©2003 Many Rivers Press
©2003 Many Rivers Press
I Worried
I worried a lot. Will the garden grow, will the rivers
flow in the right direction, will the earth turn
as it was taught, and if not how shall
I correct it?
Was I right, was I wrong, will I be forgiven,
can I do better?
Will I ever be able to sing, even the sparrows
can do it and I am, well,
hopeless.
Is my eyesight fading or am I just imagining it,
am I going to get rheumatism,
lockjaw, dementia?
Finally I saw that worrying had come to nothing.
And gave it up. And took my old body
and went out into the morning,
and sang.
- Mary Oliver
Oftentimes there
are those who can articulate through poems and songs precisely what has been
rumbling on within ( Please watch all four parts)
George Harrison’s Last Interview p 1
George Harrison’s Last Interview p 2
George Harrison’s Last Interview p 3
George Harrison’s Last Interview p 4
amdg
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