I am participating in my ninth Slice of Life Story Challenge run by the team behind the Two Writing Teachers website. We are challenged to write a blog post a day throughout the month of March.
Fifty-five
"Double nickels," my husband says.
"I need a tee shirt with
a Sammy Hagar reference," I reply.
(It's true; I prefer Texas highway
speed limits of 70)
Fifty-five
And what a year it has been,
sharing my birth month
with the anniversary of
pandemic lockdown.
COVID has colored
every
single
aspect
of my fifty-fifth year, including
A major job transition.
From Oz back to Kansas,
I've been wont to say.
But there are big skies in Kansas,
Room to grow.
The change has been exciting
if not exhausting
Fifty-five
and life is a teeny bit
more in focus.
A ten-year-plan
doesn't seem as far-fetched
as it did at twenty-five
Fifty-five
I've been gifted
four more years
than my mother was allowed.
The horizon is not quite as
unknown and scary
as it was at fifty-one.
Happy Birthday and all the best for the future. It was sad to read about your mother . She was too young.
ReplyDeleteThank you, Mukhamani. She was far too young...and the gift she's given me is to be grateful for every year I have past that age.
DeleteBeautiful post and a very happy birthday to you. I really love your poetry. You captured the sentiment of the year and your hope toward the future. Thank you for sharing this.
ReplyDeleteThank you, Dana! I am fortunate to share my birthday with the SOLSC group each year! I don't know if I would stop and reflect quite as much if this wasn't going on.
DeleteHappy Birthday!! And the best on your new job!!
ReplyDeleteThank you, Jimena! It has made for an interesting year, to be sure.
DeleteHappy Birthday! Congratulations on all you have accomplished. Best wishes for a great year ahead.
ReplyDeleteThank you, Brock. I think we should all feel accomplished, surviving the trials and tribulations of this past pandemic year!
DeleteThis one gave my goosebumps! Such a powerful way to capture this past year.
ReplyDeleteThank you, Elisabeth. It has been an odd year for all of us, hasn't it? And now I'm thinking I need to write more poetry over prose...
DeleteWhat a beautiful poem of memories, of music, of life! I have not experienced the loss of a parent, but I feel the pain of your remembrance of losing her when she was just 51, and see how you can breathe more deeply making it past that sad year.
ReplyDeleteHappy birthday!!!
DeleteThank you for the birthday wishes, and for taking this moment with me to remember the year. It is odd, to live past the years of one's parent's life, especially in the fifties. I am grateful for my health each year!
DeleteHappy birthday, friend! Such a profound poetic reflection - you pierced my heart with that line about having more years than your mother was allowed. I know what you mean, too, about the horizon not being as scary... it's due to having endured. And maybe from the savoring of every moment, which I know you do. Hope it's been a wonderful day.
ReplyDeleteFran, you always choose the best words--"endured", indeed, as you have done these past few years, supporting your family through changes both unexpected and beautiful. It was a good day! I felt celebrated and loved. Thanks for being a part of it!
DeleteChris, I love this! I like how you paint an optimistic horizon. Happy Birthday!
ReplyDeleteThank you, Alice! I do feel more optimistic now than I did at 51. It's a little odd, being in a place of looking years forward again after concentrating on making it through just one year at a time.
DeleteWow, you have had a busy year and experienced a lot of change! How long were you in Oz for? I like your poem and your positive outlook!
ReplyDeleteCelia, I got my very first library position at an upper-SES school eight years ago. It was wonderful, and fulfilling...and then my neighborhood school library position opened when the librarian, my mentor, retired at the end of last school year. I returned to this school where my children attended and I taught for a bit, now Title I. It's different, and exciting, and brings me new purpose!
DeleteChris. This poem is poignant. It really hit my gut in various places, left me feeling like I know you a little better, and want to send you warmth, positivity and hugs from afar. Happy 55 circles around the sun. TY for this thoughtful poem. XX
ReplyDeleteThank you, Nawal. Every birthday is a blessing when one considers the alternative, yes? I was wonderfully celebrated, and appreciate the positive vibes from afar!
DeleteI also recently celebrated a double nickel birthday. You remind me of the gift of each year and the possibility of so much more ahead. Enjoy!
ReplyDelete