Forbidden Love- With wisdom of age

IN REPLY TO A YOUNG WOMAN

That was beautiful, and sad,
and true.
I was a poet once,
but long ago.
The words have run together for me now,
like water colors in the rain.

Too many hurts to feel,
too many tears to conceal,
too many nights of pain.

You are a mirage to me,
a phantom always just beyond my reach.
An ageing man's fantasty-lost youth.

I feel the years in my movements these days.
When I let my guard down.
My eyes are darkening,
the blackness of a waning life.

Fifty isn't so bad, the younger folks tell me.
"Yeah", I say.
Try it.

I don't want to toss this aside,
but I will put it away.
A treasured book,
placed lovingly bacck in its place,
on the shelf from whence it came.

With a smile,
and a tear,
"Goodbye", my dear.