Gravity

friend or foe?

 

Gravity used to be my friend

making downward trips a blast

on skis the excitement didn't end

but now that's in the past

 

Newton knew what it could do

when the apple hit his head

he warned of the dangers

I think that is what he said

 

Now my body is like a stone

weighing more than I can lift

my doc says don't fall down

it will never be a gift

 

Since I have fallen many times

in the years gone past

the next time that it happens

it will probably be the last

 

When muscles cushion the fall

they hurt for many days

but bones aren't cushions

and they break in many ways

 

If you haven't felt the pain

that a broken bone gives you

don't ever try to find out

it would be the dumbest thing to do

 

Gravity will take you down

quicker than a wink

not giving you a moment

or any time to think

 

Exercise when you can

square dancing is very good

when your bones get old and brittle

you will still wish that you could

 

Just tell me you will be careful

and try to make the old bones last

pretty soon it will all be over

and you won't be needing a cast

 

 

Reviews

[Lori]

I like the balance in this poem. It has a serious topic, but the reader never feels weighed down with the aging and brittle bones that you describe. I think your rhyme scheme made it feel lighter, in a good way. It works, and the poem seems to dance in the mind in a way that seems to highlight the way the body here just can't anymore. To me, that made it even more poignant.