The keys are touched, and a chord is played,
But not as he did in a past decade.
Sounds discordant; a melody is lost.
Chords are forgotten — an old age cost?
Some tunes remembered, but not the bridges;
His hands are crusted with deepened ridges.
His mind through fingers is slow to create;
Memories of tunes are hard to locate.
“These notes don’t go here; this chord not there.”
He hears his mistakes everywhere.
“Does a major or minor chord go here?”
Tough for old-timer to play by ear.
His hands grow tired, and his memory is blurred.
To forget this much seems so absurd;
He gives to himself a carping critique,
But — he’ll play again soon, perhaps next week.
Robert L. Porter, Jr. is retired. He spent many entrepreneurial years in the computer industries, but retired as a vice president in the financial/brokerage industry. He has written poems for over 40 years, but only began seeking publication in 2015. He had a father who read stories and poems of the masters to him; and he developed a fondness for Longfellow, J. W. Riley, Poe, and many, many others. After escaping the business world, Bob has had more time to spend with his life-long passion: poetry. Improving the style and substance of his poems is his continuing focus.