The children are years gone
From this empty nest
Married, moved away, departed,
And
I no longer know when spring comes.
There are no more swim meets to chauffeur
No anxious awaiting of college acceptances
Or rejections
No proms to plan for
And as the months slide on
No graduations
Or weddings
Or end of school giddiness.
Spring is much like summer
Without these markers
And I am suspended, timeless
And yet somehow growing older
Wondering where the months
And where the children have gone.
--Dan Verner
--Dan Verner
Dan, this is powerful and sad. :(
ReplyDeleteKids really do run the world. When we are kids, it's all about our schooling and the rhythm of term/vacation/term/vacation/term/vacation/term/summer. If we go to college, it's more of the same, except we're older kids. If we become parents, it's still similar, except we're doing it for our kids. Then, suddenly, everything changes, but it has taken 40-50 years for that to change to occur. No wonder it's so difficult becoming an empty nester.
When extended families live together--an anomaly in mainstream U.S. culture--the transition is much smoother. I think your poem says a lot about our "American" interpretation of family and the life cycle.