What a beautiful tribute to a friend who has reached the "milestone"... sounds a lot more pleasant than "turning point" and a hell of a lot more attractive than "headstone"! This leaves the reader with the sense that the best is yet to come. I like it (in case you couldn't guess :)
As always, even in an acrostic poem, you impart wonderful sensory images. I loved the expression of 40 as the "afternoon of our day" How well you have conveyed this wonderful time in teh cycle of life. I am always so impressed with the imagery you convey. You would almost feel the touch of the "sun's warm fingers" My gosh you are talented!
Life gets more exciting with each passing decade because we lose more of our self consciousness, shame, feelings of inadequacy and need to be anything or anyone other than who we are. If you think the 40's are good wait till you experience the 50's...they are the best years of a womans life. We move toward authenticity as we shed our need to dazzle and please. Ask Oprah! :-)
I wanted to say that it was a very encouraging poem for those who are going to turn 40 or are 40 already. I want to also say that it is so much better than what my grandma says when we turn 40..."Lordy lordy, kelly's forty." As you can tell, we "love" that saying on our birthday....... lol.
All in all, great piece :)
THANK YOU FOR THE SMILE...Hmmmm...being 41 (uh-hum), I totally relate to your words...there truly is a rebirth at the age of 40...your thought reflects such positivity and embraces the old adage "getting better with age"...WONDERFUL!
You have a knack for conjuring interesting images in my head, such as "the sun's warm fingers". It's so delightful. It's nice, too, that the subjects, though nearer to death, look more forward to life as the days pass.
Life becomes more peaceful as we get older, I convey from this poem. I am not at 40 yet, but my husband always tells me that I will settle down and appreciate it one day. He is in mid forties. I enjoyed this poem.
Aw, that's so sweet! Many people can not appreciate the merits of giving somebody something special like a poem for their birthday. When all of the Chinese plastic presents that they got are broken in a few months, the poem will be the only thing left. Lol. That reminds me that it is not long until I turn 40! I think that I will have to buy myself a new sports car and a new, 18 year old girlfriend. :) Just kidding.
I love words and I like to write poems. Sometimes words just come and I don't know where from but I write them down anyway. There's something very powerful in the written word. It shows you where y.. more..