Growing Up

GROWING UP At the beginning, I was a baby No mind to speak of, just need Growing quickly into a toddler Ancestral genes the modeller Too young to follow a creed Destined for greatness - maybe A tall young boy, learning fast Changes in both body and brain Things one can do, stuff one can’t Life suggesting a different slant Examinations come round again Until it’s leaving school at last The world of work offers surety Self-sufficient, now living alone Many new challenging decisions Interviews for better positions Conducted on a mobile phone Balancing interests with security After decades of payslips and tax Marriage, and even having kids Retirement looms in a few years More free time and no more tears Hoping health is not on the skids Faced with a different set of facts Less about future, more of the past One’s life was a million adventures Now everything is at a slower pace Often caught staring up into space Getting used to wearing dentures And accepting that the die is cast