Drinking in the night Drunk on all her vanities Sleeping it off during the day Short memories give away The suffering we have brought Drinking the river Of wisdom that flows along Years that for an old man grows long With regrets of loneliness From poor decisions of youth
A palinode on the freedom of youth rebuked by the resulting loneliness of old age.
Inspired by the prompt at d’Verse.
Copyright © 2021 TJS Sherman All rights reserved.
Musing & Creating with T.J.S. Sherman 
love this
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thank you 😊
LikeLike
My sincere pleasure
LikeLike
I love the contrasting images here and how actions do have consequences that we may not have anticipated beforehand. Brilliant work!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Just a poem from someone who was young once, and likes to pretend they have some wisdom now.
LikeLiked by 1 person
A short memory is best and retrospect is worst. We may realize what we’ve done poorly but there’s not a damned thing we can do about it 😦 Well-compared here.
LikeLiked by 1 person
And sometimes that retrospection doesn’t come until years hence, which makes it even more acute.
LikeLiked by 1 person
This is absolutely outstanding! I love the contrast between “Drunk on all her vanities/Drinking the river of wisdom,”.. it shows how age alters the way we perceive things and act in accordance. 💝
LikeLiked by 1 person
It was an intentional contrast, thanks for noticing.
LikeLike
There’s a delightful subtlety to this. Despite the clear contrast, my first reading felt a strong blend of the stanzas which made it feel all the more clever. Nice honest work, a nudge with a, “See? Poetry.”
LikeLiked by 1 person
I’m always glad when I stumble into something meaningful. I appreciate the perspective.
LikeLiked by 1 person
That drinking part is different between the first and second stanza. Sadly we learn the foolish youthful ways when we are old. Thanks for joining in.
LikeLiked by 1 person
This is a great contrast in your rebuttal. Wise words of wisdom as well!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Trying to heed them before I’m too old to. Thank you!
LikeLiked by 1 person
You are welcome!
LikeLike
Youth is wasted on the young, that’s for sure … This is a crisp fulcrum between follies of youth and wisdom of age. It’s also a fine metaphor for the lousy place we’re now in as aged and rueful citizens of a badly damaged earth.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Maybe that’s how it should be. The recklessness of youth gives the old man the wisdom of age.
LikeLiked by 1 person
You have set the oppositions up nicely here. The young man in thinking himself invincible was storing up years of hurt for his older self.
LikeLiked by 1 person
We all have those decisions we wish we could have undone. The wisdom comes in the moving forward.
LikeLiked by 1 person
If we could know the result of our decisions at youth, the world would look different I think.
LikeLiked by 1 person
I agree, but I think we’d be much more restrained leading to more regrets in old age, just different ones.
LikeLike