TWO OLD MEN
A rainy day, in sullen gloom
The aged men sit…
No need to turn the lights on,
Enough daylight’s legit.
–
The one, in his favorite chair,
The other riding shotgun…
A lot of folks have passed through there
Since this ritual was begun.
–
Both chairs are slightly angled
Out toward the sun or rain…
Watching for the U.S. Mail
And Meals on Wheels again.
–
Each sits in his revelry,
Silent as a tomb…
One or both may notice
Someone entering the Common Room.
–
The elder is hard of hearing
And wears a hearing aid…
You wouldn’t know talking to him,
Responses are delayed!
–
They sit and watch for hours
From early morn to night…
Getting up for meals and bathroom breaks,
They keep the world in sight.
–
One takes an afternoon nap
And then others may fill in…
When either of the men return,
Newcomers give way to them.
–
They see almost all that’s going on,
In the courtyard and in the road…
When Homemakers or Nurses come
We strike the mother lode!
–
When time is nearing end-of-day
And evening transpires…
The watchful two get up and leave,
Eat and retire.
–
No one keeps a watchful eye
On the overnight….
No goings-on to entertain,
Just fisher cats to fight.
–
But shortly after daybreak,
We again see these two…
Sitting near the windows
Watching for anything new.
–Jonathan Caswell
By the Mighty Mumford 