Me, a cynic?
can't be
I love all that
which is scenic!

Don't you sing me
another love-song
enough I've had
my love all went wrong-

don't you tell me
love is sweet as a rose
my sense of smell is lost
now my poor heart I close-

don't you persuade me
to go in search of another
too many tears I've shed
I don't ever wish again to be a lover-

don't you write me a poem
of love pure and over-glorified
from life I've walked away
my feelings have long ago sadly died.

My life-long journey I made
to the furthest edge
of experience--in patience
and humility-- old age
begins to tell but no message
of understanding or joy
has greeted me in my passage
I'm far from being enriched
what's before me
is dim and desolate--
the field is parched
the trees are starved
the sea is tideless
the sky is charcoal-black
birds have taken flight
new havens to locate
they would never come back

there's nothing here
for an old man to celebrate
but to sigh and regret--

there's not the slightest flicker
of light in the stealthy night
there's no moon awaiting
nor a single star in sight-

I feel the utter emptiness
my heart begins to cry
my feet are frozen in numbness
as the bitter winds unabatedly blow by.

The boot prints fade
And forgiveness is lost
The river floods his trail