Seeing the World With Old Eyes

A Poem by Dan Strawn

Award winning author Dan Strawn shares a poem about how seeing with old eyes brings a fresh call to unity, real patriotism and purpose..

"Being old is sometimes worth the wait."   --Dan Strawn, Bits and Pieces, pg. 86 

Introductory Note:

Dan's second "Elders Hearth" guest blog post is hot off the press . . . or perhaps the night stand. Consider indulging your imagination to visualize Dan thoughtfully unrolling this poetic gem, as you relax and listen alongside him--both in your favorite chairs. Feel its elderly drawl flowing deeply and clearly from a vibrant heart of wisdom. Its history somehow lands right here in the present.

--Colleen Akiko

---

Seeing the World With Old Eyes

I had my cataracts removed at eighty-three

and see pretty good for eighty-six

Except for seeing double

which makes doing things difficult

The double-vision thing hit me

when I was seventy-six

two lanes turned to four

While driving

I closed one eye and saw only

two lanes to drive on

Since then

I wear special glasses

—

The closing one eye routine

got me thinking

about time wasted while

looking back at my life lived

What if I toyed

with this closing-one-eye metaphor

and looked mostly at tomorrows

and hardly at yesterdays

Would that give me more time

to focus on where

the rest of my life

beckons

I have since acted on

this closing-one-eye idea

So far

I am pleased with the results

—

Like I said

I am eighty-six now

I have slowed up a lot

learned a lot about

living a life

getting old

knowing good ideas

from bad ideas

and

wearing special glasses

to avoid

Seeing double

I put them on the nightstand

when I go to bed at eight-thirty

and answer my bladder's call

At one a.m. and again at three-fifteen a.m.

Closing one eye I sit up and

grab a cane that keeps me upright

My walking reminds me of

my great grandson’s gait

I can't remember if he is two

soon to turn three

or already three

Time flies fast at eighty six

Anyway

we have a lot in common

even with him being two or three

and me for sure all of eighty six

Like him

I wobble when I walk

Like me

his bladder has its own schedule

Unlike me

He doesn't feel aches and pains

because

His parts are brand new

My left knee grinds when I stand up

One leg drags after a two-mile hike

My once-broken ankle rebels

when I climb stairs

Trigger fingers take turns

disturbing my nighttime sleep

Both thumb joints take over

when the fingers lose interest

My shoulders ache

on alternate days

likely because

of youthful ventures—

Jumping out of trees

Bareback horse rides

High school football

Bucking summer hay

Surfing Pacific waves

Cycling cross country

down mountain paths

or off wooden ramps

Now and then

a new pain pops up

It hurts a little bit

then lays low and

picks a time to ambush me…

The day after tomorrow

when a week slides past

or next Fourth of July

Was the old-age price too high

for those audacious memories

of yesteryears gone

Hell no

—

Sometime between seventy-six and eighty six

I began to see some truth in that

Getting-Old adage —

It is not for the weak of heart

Seeing the world through old eyes

Life slowing to a crawl

A daily litany of new aches

Life slowing to a crawl

Tying my shoes becoming a chore

Life slowing to a crawl

cat naps lasting until sunset

Life slowing to a crawl

Grappling with all these

Hence the Old Adage

Hence the regrets

About Life slowing to a crawl

—

Metamorphosis

A caterpillar grows wings

and flies

The change certifies

the grandeur of a power bigger than us

I know in my soul my actions can't

compare with the

crawling caterpillar who one day

soars in the air as a butterfly

My Metamorphosis

Old age making life slow to a crawl

My mind seeing a path forward

that certifies our planet is a tiny bit better

for me having lived on it

This clarity inspires me to quit crying

about old age and look to the future

I know…

I don't have much energy

But I have found ways to make a difference

I have ideas to share and time to do so

I look forward

where change happens

I see clearly through

old eyes riveted on my tomorrows

I am making plans about

what to do with my life

—

I grew up knowing Jesus

said it is better to give

than to receive

or words to that effect

When old age slowed me down

and gave me time

to reflect on that notion

I discovered

the concept of giving

is fundamental to

almost all societies and religions

Be they advanced or primeval

I began to see

why other versions of Christ's words

of giving were scattered among

other cultures and doctrines

This commonality occurred

because old people

were the thinkers

in primitive societies

They were also the ones

tending to children while

parents delt with survival's demands

That makes perfect sense to me

The building blocks of my ethos

came for the most part from

my grandmother Higgins

who spewed out vignettes of wisdom

While thrashing me in checkers

or some other thinking game

during my early

adolescence

The wisdom she departed while

teaching me humility

typifies why cultures

honor their elders

Sharing with others

the wisdom of lives lived

is the primary value

the older generation contributes

Sharing what I've learned

in my life

with younger generations

gives me purpose

Doing so teaches me

what they already know—

Doing so

brings us close

—

This day

I want to share

what my old eyes see needs attention

— NOW —

We

Americans

Are all of one mind

when it comes to what matters

We may have different origins

look different

talk different

dress different

We may work different jobs

worship in different ways

or don't worship at all

We may be different in all kinds of ways

We are

fathers sons

mothers daughters

grandmothers grandfathers

We are

neighbors coworkers

classmates teammates

and friends

Whatever

we are Americans

We are Patriotic

We are there

for each other

TODAY

WE

ARE FAILING

WE ALL SAY WE ARE

PATRIOTIC

BUT WE ARE NOT ALL BEHAVING

LIKE PATRIOTS

American Patriots

honor the diversity among us

We understand our system underwrites

the power of disagreement constructively discussed

We can't have constructive

discussions with our compatriots

If we hurl demeaning epithets

at each other

We slander We-the-People when we demean people

They are family and friends

neighbors and coworkers

team members and church members

We call them

Rinnos Libtards Trumpites

Wokes Red Necks and other unsavory labels

that brand them as less human than our worthy selves

Those who debase

FELLOW AMERICANS

often do it from afar—the safety of a social network

a political meeting or a group of like-thinking friends

This idea of dehumanizing human beings

is a product of war strategies that likely

go back to when Alexander the Great

conquered his known world or before

The British came up with Yankee Doodle

to tease our Revolutionary soldiers

about their warrior

naivete

In more recent times

The British and Americans

doubled up

in World War II

They called Germans Krauts

or Heinies

and Japanese Japs

or Nips

North Koreans

were Gooks

in the

Korean conflict

and so on

through

our numerous

conflicts since Korea

The warring purpose through

the centuries—

Dehumanize the enemies so soldiers

don't hesitate to kill them

Think about that

the next time

you tag someone

as a Woke or a Redneck in lieu of their name

—

Do not look to DC to amend this travesty

They are among those who started it

If a leader is rousing your support

by calling the other side crude names

Know you are being

swayed

by the leader in

ways

That run counter to what

We-The-People is all about

regardless of what she or he

promises you

LOOK ELSEWHERE

This is a grassroots problem

It's up to you and me to fix it

****

Me

seeing the world with old eyes…

I wonder

what I will see next

Stay tuned

© May 25, 2025 by Dan Strawn