The years--what did they say
that I had grown old and senile?
there's still throbbing sap in the ageing tree
its trunk, branches and leaves would still last a while

never mind the young offshoots nearby
that have joined the shared foliage
they will be the sprouting voice of the future
the flourishing flagstaff that will carry the message

that all life is one and existence
is a cycle of eternal recurrence*
what had gone before would give way
in gracious gesture to a fresh in-coming  -- radiance

never loses its glow in the overall of both the young and old
there's light still in the warm and generous day
the ageing tree once provided lovely shade to weary travellers
it has had its times of glory--what more should it say?