Nostalgia and Regret

Way back when I was a cager                        cager = basketball player
    6' 2," 175 pounds as a teenager

  Maintained those stats 'til almost thirty
    when my physique became more sturdy

  Kept adding pounds through forty-five
    when I tipped the scales at 225

  Then I started shrinking too
    no longer was I 6' 2"

  By sixty I was down to six feet even
    while my weight up to 260 was creepin' 

  I am so ashamed of what follows
    'cos excuses like 'COVID' all ring hollow

  So here I am, 5' 10" at age 73
    carrying 295 pounds ~ the 'brand-new me'
Copyright © | Year Posted 2023

Poem

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Rodrigues Avatar
September 21, 2023 at 6:36 PM
Times and physiques change. Time to tie the sneakers and head out for a stroll.
Wolf Avatar
September 21, 2023 at 7:10 PM
My strolls last 150-200 steps max. The extreme pain in walking (even cane-assisted) and the subsequent splitting headache are factors mitigating against a 'sunny stroll.'
Flood Avatar
September 21, 2023 at 3:43 PM
Tosh! 73 is the new 90… I mean 55. Get up in your loft, drag out your flares and your tank tops and that really stale ‘weed’ and strut down the street saying, “It’s groovy, man… cool… right on!”. The local kids will bellow, “Look at him… he’s gotta be at least forty!”… You’ll feel like a million dollars!
Wolf Avatar
September 21, 2023 at 7:05 PM
Pain all over my body, everywhere, doesn't let me walk at all (except in adrenaline-inducing emergencies). There goes your vision, Terry. lol.
Bauer Avatar
September 21, 2023 at 1:53 PM
ha! don't know if you intended this to be humorous, gershon, but it sounds like you're poking fun at yourself a little bit so i can laugh along with you. great poem!
Wolf Avatar
September 21, 2023 at 7:07 PM
Yup. I sure am poking fun at myself. Thanks, ilene.
Lawless Avatar
September 21, 2023 at 6:43 AM
remember the "good old days" when "shrinkage" was a dirty word...
Wolf Avatar
September 21, 2023 at 7:07 PM
Ha, ha! Now 'shrinkage' is merely a 'nasty word.'
Rhymer Avatar
September 20, 2023 at 8:29 PM
Look up insulin resistance.Also G.W. a significant loss of height could be due to osteoporosis.Want to see a differant take on that go to German new medicine A to Z.Then tap osteoporosis.Never give up my friend.
Wolf Avatar
September 21, 2023 at 7:08 PM
Oh, I was on top of this long ago. No help there for what I've got... Thanks anyway for the caring suggestions, Vickey! Appreciated. ~ Gershon
Hawkins Avatar
September 20, 2023 at 8:07 PM
An interesting write. do you have curvature of the spine? Gershon or osteoporosis, this has caused me to shrink three inches which I can ill afford and as I do not move as fast as I would like to the weight gain seems unavoidable. Take care, Shirley.
Wolf Avatar
September 20, 2023 at 8:25 PM
Yes I have lordosis and kyphosis, both genetic. As for weight gain, it's soooooo frustrating. I eat like a bird. (And I don't mean a vulture either. Oh, well...). Complain, complain. Who wants to hear it? -- Nobody!
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