March 15, 2015

YOU KNOW YOU’RE OLD WHEN…

You know you’re old when

you use your plastic pill box

to tell you what day of the week it is.

You know you’re old when

you have to get up three times every night.

You know you’re old when

your trifocals are full of dust and dirt and dandruff

and fingerprints and you think it’s a hazy day.

You know you’re old

when you don’t know what color your

hair really is and you don’t want to know.

You know you’re old when

you look down at the barber shop floor

and all the hair on the floor is gray

and it’s all yours – what little is there.

You know you’re old when
you’re wondering if the wrinkle on your arm

is a stray strand of spaghetti.

You know you’re old when

others finish your stories.

You know you’re old when

they tap you to tell you you’re hearing aid is whistling.

You know you’re old when

friends and family are scared to call you past 8 P.M.  

You know you’re old when

you don’t know whom you’re daughter-in-law’s

mother-in-laws husband is.

You know you’re old when

you don’t know your zipper is unzipped.

You know you’re old when

you keep saying, “I don’t know where I put it.”

You know you’re old when

you don’t care what others think and you’re not afraid to say so.

You know you’re old when

the whine in your mouth is spelled “whine” not “wine”.

You know you’re old when

you don’t know how old you are.

© Andy Costello, Reflections, 2015