Yes, I accept
life's harsh
with its arrows
and slings ******
unannounced
precipitous
even surreptitious -
frail and fragile
as I am
I'll not bow out
nor yield
myself I'll still trust:
in the darkest
of the dark
all obstacles
away I'll brush-

the measure
of a person
doesn't lie
in comfort
only in tribulation
and strife-

all things come
and go to pass
big battles there are

my ground
I'll hold on to-
to triumph-
at last!

My poetry
finds and defines me

as long as
I stay with it
we're a unity

to it I'm tied
in continuity

faith, the utmost faith
is required
in this mutual loyalty

when I'm sinking
it will embrace me
as I step into finality

I'll hold
to this little
that's my own
nothing more-
augmentation
has never been
my aim or game-

my boundary
I well know
the length of my arms
I can't expand

while others
in the public-square
their skills they boast
and proclaim

I'll hold
to my conviction:
all that I treasure
is being unknown
and being left alone

Hello, Poetry
will you visit me
and share my muse
and my story?

Hello Poetry
I hope you'll not forget me
we've travelled so far together
so delightful has been the journey.

Hello Poetry
You have known my misery
intertwined with my joy
and so intimately kept me company.

Hello Poetry
time has spoken and I'm fading quickly
I long more than ever your consoling words
look not away,  stay, oh do stay with me!

The years have slipped away
I've been too slow to recognise
now I feel age deeply
dim are my weary eyes-

my hair has turned more white
sharper wrinkles are written on my brow
my steps have lost their bounce
I'm easily weary now-

the village-kids have turned adults
they have left for the town
how I missed their laughter
and presence-- hardly a handful are around-

there will be a marriage tomorrow
he's Henry and  she's  Nancy
I taught them three decades ago
will they still remember me?

Without discipline, patience will not thrive

West: Steel yourself!

    Zen and Taoism:  Still yourself