woke this morning
\nto a picture of myself
\non the paper
\ncosied up to my computer screen
\nand there’s “Yer Gretzkys”
\nword for (translation: “fer”) word
\nand note for note;
\nit’s all
\nthe essence of everything
\nI sang to Kathleen
\na couple of days ago.<\/p>\n
When an old guy sings
\nhe realizes
\nhe doesn’t look twenty-five any more
\nor even fifty-five
\nin fact, singing “When I’m Sixty-four”
\nis a pretty iconic joke<\/p>\n
conversely, I’m starting to look like
\nparts of me are going backwards
\nI’m becoming more like
\nmy grandchildren
\nin the first stages of infancy
\na tipped over glass of juice here
\na stumble on the carpet there
\na little drool here
\nbefore long I’ll wake up
\nin the middle of the night
\n(I already do that)
\ncrying for a drink<\/p>\n
So what will all this
\nfame of being on the paper
\nmean?<\/p>\n
First of all
\nlet me say
\nfame won’t change me
\nanno domini is already
\nchanging me faster than
\nfame could ever do<\/p>\n
No, I think
\nwhat it will all mean is
\nonce in a while
\nin the housewear section
\nof Canadian Tire
\nsome old guy’s going to
\nlook at me as if he knows me
\nand I’m going to wonder
\nif I taught him
\nand then I’ll realize
\nI’m looking in a mirror<\/p>\n
or maybe not.<\/p>\n
[* “on the paper” is Cornwall idiom for being featured or mentioned in the local newspaper, the <\/em>Standard-Freeholder]<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" woke this morning to a picture of myself on the paper cosied up to my computer screen and there’s “Yer Gretzkys” word for (translation: “fer”) word and note for note; it’s all the essence of everything I sang to Kathleen … Continue reading