I See the Lightning

 

I See the Lightning

I still see the lightning flash

Even though my eyes are closed.

Illumination comes to me even when

I do not wish to see it.

I still can write in shaky cursive,

Though I have only printed

Since I was a boy back in seventh grade

And my poor teacher begged me to write legibly.

I still can ride a bicycle

Even though I'm old

And my center of gravity

Has shifted considerably.

I still get the urge to take off running

Even though my knees can't take it anymore

Just for the sheer joy of the thing,

To fly like wind across an open field.

I still carry in me all that I have learned

Though most of it I learned when I was young,

It was part of growing up back then,

And to my surprise, a part of simply breathing now.

© 2017 by Tom King

Not So Tough

© 2002 By Tom King

We are not so tough as we'd like to believe

  Nor so wise as we think.

There are always some more tough than we

  And others more smart.

In the great and fabled "wash"

  The thing everything is supposed to all come out in,

There is, of necessity,

  A certain quantity of soap

It stings our eyes

   Burns our open wounds

Makes our skin tingle

   And puts everything into a great lather.

But, it is believed by many, that we all

   Need a good wash sometimes.

No matter how tough, no matter how strong;

  No matter how wise we think we are.

© 3/29/2002 – at Lake Palestine