the show must go on

the show must go on

for Paul Burke SR. recently deceased

fiction
edward w pritchard

when i first lost my youth I sighed for my vanished beauty
later after I lost my youth I mourned my forgone vitality and strength
now that my youth is gone I am a shadow of myself

when at first i lost myself I revisited my childhood many times in my mind
later when i lost myself i cried over lost friends
now when i am no longer myself i amble alone along the river and feel the sunshine on my tired arms

when i first journeyed far from home to find myself i carried a walking stick and beat and beat at the ground
later when i journeyed far off alone i dropped my walking stick and picked flowers for the memory of lost friends
now when i walk far off alone i raise my walking stick to the sun with both hands and am at peace with myself

when i first was at peace with myself i told my grandchildren many many stories of my childhood
when i second was at peace i walked along the river and thought of lost friends and my lost self
now that i am at peace i sit with my grandchildren and listen to the stories they tell me of many things of their childhoods


[ in the style of the honorable patrul rinpoche]