This Old Chap

 
This Old Chap 

This Old Chap

The weariness from lack of sleep,
The weariness from age,
And all the buffets borne before
Combine to blur the page.

And though he writes his verses still
And so avoids despair,
It seems his vision falters, fogs
And fades beyond repair.

And so the time has come, perhaps,
To take a quiet nap.
And then he might have strength for more—
This old, persistent chap.

And see—he dozes in his chair
And jerks from time to time.
And when he wakes, he’ll fix again
The meter, sound and rhyme.

2018 May 30th, Wed.
Brooklyn, New York
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Of All the Pleasures

  
Of All the Pleasures
    
How pleasant is the bliss of sleep
To those deprived of rest –
Of all the pleasures of this Earth,
Perhaps the very best.

Like rain upon a land that’s parched,
Like grace to those tormented,
So is that blessing sweet that comes
When sleeplessness is ended.

2014 April 7th, Monday, 4:45 pm
Teachers’ Cafeteria, Basement,
New Utrecht High School
Bensonhurst, Brooklyn