WHEN I AM OLD
...
I shall wear diamonds
And a wide brimmed straw
hat
With silver and leather on it
and I shall spend my social
security
On white wine and carrots
And sit in the alley of my
barn
And listen to my horses breathe.
I will sneak out in the
middle of a summer's night
And ride the palomino
Across the
moonstruck meadow.
If my old bones will allow.
And when people
come to call I will smile and nod.
As I walk them past the
gardens to the barn
And show, instead, the beauty growing
there
In stalls fresh-lined with straw.
I will learn to shovel
and sweat and
Wear hay in my hair as if it were a jewel.
And I
will be an embarrassment to all
Who look down on me.
Who have
not yet found the peace in being free
To love a horse as a
friend,
A friend who waits at midnight hour
With muzzle and
nicker and patient eyes
For the kind of woman I will be
When I
am Old.
AuthorUnknown
