the joy of becoming

parts of who I am

just because I turn 65 soon,

and connections of retirement 

and Social Security 

and Medicare pull at me,

being this age is only part of who I am,

what do I feel are larger parts?

I am a teacher

who still hears the call of the young,

and feels enough wisdom to find the voice to answer,

I am a boy

to whom nature calls to explore,

to learn, to glory in a flower, a sunrise,

a lesson in what can come to be

if we can but treasure the becoming,



I am a grandfather

who hopes to be around long enough

for granddaughters and grandson to know me

while they’re well on their way to revealing who they are,

I am a learner

who joys in being incomplete

for then I can wake up in the morning

with a hope to understand more fully

how and why things are.

by Henry H. Walker

January 27, ’13