I love it Charlie. We unfortunately are "herd" animals not very different from sheep. We play follow the leader but the leader keeps changing. So we go left for a while and right for a while. We end up back where we started knowing that we all just await the final day.

I love reading your poems for I can so easily relate to them. I especially loved this one, especially the last 2 stanzas---and Charlie, I LEARNED a NEW WORD!"curmudgeons" thank you :)

You know, now I can really appreciate the picture you have posted. It is obvious that Kai has captured your big heart. It is his. It is in him. Looking at him, therefore is looking at you. Once more you snatch up my admiration with genius lines: "he isn't old enough to see the train / of change, chugging from his heels." It seems to me that Kai has given you life. May it be a much longer one than you imagine. Wonderful poem, Charlie.

A fine exploration of the regularities in life, altho I chuckle at your wild side of leaving one crossword blank, and adore what Kai has added to your days. Thanks for sharing your inside happiness.

Clearly the years have not strained your lucidity, but rather, have only helped you to evolve into someone who sees certain colors outside of the visible spectrum.

Mind expanding write, Charlie, which I appreciate. I also like its structure. I particularly enjoyed the words "the train of change, chugging from his heels."

I absolutely adore this poem. You know, it's funny, when I was thinking about the new decade, the new year, and all the wasted moments in the past, I discovered this sentiment: we spend so much time thinking about the past that it destroys our present moment; in the seconds of clarity in the present we are focused on changing the future so it doesn't end up like the past, and then, once we've reached the future, we realize that we've honored no present because we spent too much time thinking about the past and worrying about transforming the future. You, you capture the present moment, beautifully, simply, and wonderfully. Thank you.

What an absolutely lovely piece...your perceptions of life, of change and of the passing of time are poignant and sweet and they make me smile.

Oh how you turn a heart and mind to ponder and embrace. I love poetry that brings people outside of themselves. This one is a Symphonic Gong!

I love the end of the poem. It has the impact of a joke's punchline. Also, the lines "i needed to feign to deign; or i needed deign to feign; such is life." were enjoyable. A great write and a good read. Love your style here too. Investments of thoughts are more important than we know indeed. Thanks for this delightful insight.