Loss and Gain
I wrote this for a teammate when he lost his father. I want to send it out again tonight to another dear friend for the same reason.
Never thought
I could come to this place,
where I could bear
not to talk face to face.
Watch the elder graduate.
Feel a sense of loss.
See the young one
step to the plate.
Think of the gain,
not the cost.
Constant loss and constant gain,
the ebb and flow of joy and pain.
Someday you'll lose your sight.
You might even lose your hearing.
If you lose direction,
relax,
retrace your tracks.
You will eventually
find a clearing.
Gain perspective,
gain a grip,
try to maintain the gain
and gain a whip.
Gain and loss,
loss and gain,
acceptance arrives,
to silence complaints.
The athlete mourns dexterity,
the pauper his prosperity.
Ironic how loss,
an emotional toss,
can welcome in some clarity.