Before I Forget

 June 13, 2021

I am keenly aware of some of the benefits of living as long as I have. My strength isn’t what it used to be, not that it was all that great to begin with; My eyes sometimes betray me, and my ears—suffice it to say that even with hearing aids, I can sound pretty foolish in a conversation, asking a question that’s just been answered, or offering a comment that has no connection with what has been said around the table. 

I got to thinking about this the other day; I’ve talked with too many people whose loved ones slowly slipped into the oblivion of Alzheimer’s or some other dementia. I’m not expecting this; I fully hope to be like Caleb, who at 85 was as vigorous as he was at 45, and ready to conquer the mountain God promised him. I am also aware of the possibilities, and not wanting to leave things unsaid that need to be said, I offer this in honor of Linda.

Before I Forget

We were talking together about nothing particular 

when across my mind a stray thought alighted.

“Before I forget,” I said, and told you what had passed my way; 

Something I thought you should know.

How often I’ve held thoughts close, sure that I’d remember, 

Only to have them slip away unspoken, lost forever.

Cementing in time a fleeting ephemeral thought, 

“Before I forget” makes a gift of interruption.

Words once lazily leaned against the walls of our conversations, 

Waiting their turn to speak.

Never in a hurry, they loitered.

Now, impatiently they jostle together until one by one,

They slowly drift away

Unless I murmur, “Before I forget.”

I say it more often now; 

Thoughts dance and spin across the stage of my mind,

Words and feelings, slippery and evasive,

“Before I forget” holds them on my lips, unlocking my heart.

The love in your eyes,

Sunlight on your hair,

Softness of your touch,

The sound of your voice;

Let me look upon you once more with these aging eyes

Before I forget.

Someday, mind clouded by a shroud of confusion,

The words may not come.

So let me say once more, “I love you,”

Before I forget.