Getting Old Poems | Examples

Premium MemberOld Man

Old Man
(for Pema)

The older I get the more I feel I fade away.
It’s not a bad thing it’s just what is
As old friends die off one by one
While others just drift away
And the passions I once knew 
Become nothing more than a lingering scent.
Maybe it takes too much effort
To do or feel anything more,
Maybe it’s simply having done that
And been there so many times before.
Eventually even the joyous play
Of dogs or children 
Only remind me how tired I am,
Tired but still happy
With an inward glow
Of appreciation for the Life that flows
Within me and without me.

(9/8/25)
Categories: getting old, age, old, perspective,
Form: Narrative

Premium MemberGetting old and grey

It seems that I am getting old and grey,
my body's also slowing down its pace.
But, I've still much to do, and much to say.

It seems to me that life is like a race,
It starts off fast with youth upon your side.
You swiftly run and barely leave a trace.

It seems each day is like a rolling tide
that ebbs and flows decisions are engaged.
And through each year no choice, we take the ride.

It seems before too long we're middle aged
more settled, future planned, yet to unfold.
Perspectives held when young have some-what changed.

It seems somehow, our lives become controlled
by forces unforeseen we cannot stop.
Dictated by our bodies growing old.

It seems that soon we'll have to close the shop,
and face the fact we can no longer be.
So, take the final journey to the top.

It seems the bucket list that is for me
is incomplete, therefore I'll have to stay.
Tick off the list to do and lots to see.

And I should really start this all today,
it seems that I am getting old and grey.
Categories: getting old, age, old,
Form: Rhyme


Bubble burst

If you want
To go out
Have a drink
Shake a leg

Take a bet
Take a chance
Win or lose
Have a dance

I don't really care

I don't care
All that much
Come and go
 it - so?

Have a run
Getting fit
I don't really
Give a...

What do you want
Do you know
Please yourself
Let it - go

Take a risk
Feet first
Jump right in
Bubble - burst

If you think about, how you live your life
What do you want to leave behind?
I want to see the world, I want to know that I
Did the very best that I could

I pissed myself
I'm getting old
It was warm
It went - cold

Do you love?
Is that enough?
Are you the one?
I think I'm done.


(This poem is dedicated to sertraline)
Categories: getting old, depression, drink, drug,
Form: Lyric

The Business Of Getting Old

It's not easy to get old 
You must learn not to expect anything 
From anyone, to walk alone
Waking up alone, eat alone
And accepting that everything comes to an end
So is life, it's fleeting, not to grasp a little
Know how to say goodbye 
To those who are leaving 
Remember them and cry for them 
Until you are empty inside 
To leave room for new smiles 
To form other illusions and new longings
If we had another chance to live our lives again 
We would do everything we didn't dared to do 
Doing the things that which is right
But life is reality as I open my eyes
Time is not coming back
Growing up is a choice
All people get old if they live long enough
But not all people mature 
No matter how long they live.
Categories: getting old, age, growth, life,
Form: Free verse

Growing Old

It feels like I’ve been around too long.
Every tune has become the same old song.
Every plight’s just a fight to no end
cuz there’s no way to win.

And I can’t help but notice as I’m growing old -
I believe less and less of what I’m told.
Cuz the world’s nothing more than
an endless round of spin.

Every voyage I take that’s pushed by sails
is another lap around to no avail.
Cuz I keep on ending up in the place
where I began.

And everything I once thought was marvelous
anymore, well I’m just not so damned impressed.
Cuz where I used to wonder now sadly, I understand.

But I guess it all comes with the territory,
as does the feeling - don’t bother me.
Cuz I’m fine spending time on my own
through the years of gold.

I’ll just let the world go its merry way.
I’m at peace inside at the end of the day.
Cuz that’s just how it is, I suppose…
when you get old.
Categories: getting old, life,
Form: Rhyme


GETTING OLD TO FAST

GETTING OLD TO FAST

My life is going by so fast
Sometimes I'm forgetting a lot about my past
I do have lots of concerns
Maybe because of all my nerves
Sometimes I look back on when I was twenty-one
A lot of the time I can't even remember what I ever done
Sometimes I'm hurting all the time
And then the next minute I feel fine
My hair has been thinning out
It starts losing a small amount,and now
Losing a large amount
I guess this is how my life is going to be
I guess your hair doesn't come with any guarantee
My walking has been slowing down
And my walking doesn't even cover a lot of ground
These years are going by so fast
So most of the time I will just sit back and relax
I'm at my retirement age
At this time in my life, I know nothing will change

Anthony Speranza
Categories: getting old, age, feelings, old,
Form: Rhyme

Premium MemberGetting Old

It’s easy to feel old
when you get older,
little things like aches that linger,
work days that feel done after just a few hours,
sleep that feels done well before the sun will rise,
but being around my 3 year old grandson
makes me REALLY feel old,
older than my 64 years should feel,
but it also reminds me
what it was like to be 3
eager to do and explore,
ask and learn,
then do and explore a little more,
until it’s time for a nap.
I’m not quite at the age of naps yet,
but I certainly appreciate his.

(10/21/23)
Categories: getting old, age, grandchild, grandfather, relationship,
Form: Narrative

The Fear of Getting Old

Oh old weed 
Thy feet weathered 
Like that of a tree 

Like a child 
Always carried 
Thy beauty left behind 

Trembling feet 
What a painful joy 
Scattered teeth 

Grandchild taking thy as fun
Knoweth not that 
Old though shall become 

Twisted face 
But beauty glance,once was
Sun,laughing,cause you're at the end of the race 

If this is what it means 
To get old 
Then proudly I will tell the wind 
That it's not in my will!!
Categories: getting old, anger, animal, assonance, beach,
Form: Villanelle

Getting Old

Getting Old

I used to look so young and slim
I could wear anything I chose
now I buy from tent shops
it's the only way to get clothes

I can't rise without a noise
the ground feels so far away
my bones creak and groan
as upwards I sway

These days I like to sit and read
before I could run and play
I would dance all night given half a chance
now I just sit and decay

My hair turned grey long ago
I nap now maybe twice a day
many things are different now
as I reach another birthday

But in my mind nothings changed
I'm still that young girl inside
a little wiser hopefully
just with a bigger backside

I see her in the mirror still
as I stand there and apprise
she's a little hidden now
but just gaze into my eyes

That's where the girl is still
who loved to party night and day
you only see my age now
but the girl is here to stay

Ok, maybe I'm slower now
but I can still party with the best
just have me home by tea time
so I can have a rest.
Categories: getting old, age, body, change, funny,
Form: Rhyme

When You Are Getting Old

When you are getting old grey and full of sleep,
And nodding by the fire, picking up this book,
And slowly reading, dreaming of the soft look
Your eyes had once, of their shadows deep;

Many of loved moments are full of grace,
And beauty with love false or true,
But only one man loved the soul in you
And loved the sorrows of a changing face;

Bending down beside the glowing bars,
A murmur, little sadly, how love fled,
And raced upon the mountains ahead,
Hid a face amid a crowd of stars.
Categories: getting old, dream, love, poetry,
Form: Free verse

I Am Getting Old

I am getting old 
Old of these days 
A repeated pattern of emotions and feelings 
These can't stop ending 
The tear filled nights 
The lonely mornings 
The lost hours 
Lost in thinking
I am getting old 
Of the emotions 
These moments 
I want other moments
 moments filled with excitement
Moments that send thrills down my spine 
I am getting old 
Old of these days 
A repeated pattern 
A pattern that doesn't seem to end 
The tear filled nights
 the lonely days 
The lost sleep 
I am getting old 
Trying to find the new
 
	- Dania Punjani
Categories: getting old, 10th grade, addiction, anxiety,
Form: Free verse

Premium MemberOn Getting Old

My mother played solitaire, 
Dozens of varieties, 
With a miniature deck of cards
That traveled with her
When she visited her children.
She lived with me, but
She couldn’t hear well
And smoked a LOT, so
She stayed in her room 
A great deal of the time. 
She smoked and played solitaire,
Sitting by the window
At her cluttered card table.
 
Now I play spider solitaire
on my computer in my room.
I live in a senior residence, so 
I don’t spend as much time 
At it as my mother did.
I can choose to play Bingo
Or other card games 
Like Bridge or Pitch
Or sing in a little chorus.
I can go on an occasional trip.
My hearing is okay with
The hearing aids and I don’t smoke!
My children come to see me
But they don’t have me underfoot.
I have the best of both worlds.
Categories: getting old, age, analogy, family, parents,
Form: Free verse

Premium MemberAm Getting Old

Am getting old yet heart’s aglow
Bliss thunder throbs within
Way of life, tranquil stillness slow
Wrinkles adorn my skin

Mind not life scars and pain
Now, no bondage, no chain
As wisdom, I ingrain

My hands feel cold
Am getting old

14-January-2022
Quietus
Categories: getting old, age,
Form: Rhyme

Premium MemberGetting Old Is Fun Not Funny

I cannot wait to drive a sports car I thought!
Now I have a red one, it took me awhile.
Guys race to see what I look like.
From the back I am sure I look young and sexy.

When they pull up and honk I give them my old face.
If I smile wide enough, they get to see how many teeth I am missing.
I get a kick out of it. I know I shouldn’t
But it is one of the few things that makes me laugh.

I cannot wait to be a grandma and live in the country.
That was my ultimate dream.
I am a grandma to ten, and I do live in the country.
But there is arthritis in both of my ankles.

Sometimes I step down and it feels like I have broken both ankles.
Do whatever you want while you are young, girl.
My dog knocked me down and I am pretty sure I am dead now.
Just determined not to believe it - easier to do at my ripe old age.
Categories: getting old, age,
Form: Prose Poetry

Getting Old Together

Getting old together

There is an unspoken acceptance you share in silence
No need to be entertaining you are boring if you tell the same story twice.
Yet, you do.
They say there is much to learn from soap opera, a lecture I can do without
we have two TV, and I hold my tongue.
She sits in the living room, I sit in my study
we meet briefly when it is time for bed.
We speak about plans for tomorrow and the coming winter.
A kiss of a good night.
She goes to her bedroom
I go to mine.
We live in a peaceful home; the only sound is the ticking clock.
Categories: getting old, death, faith, family,
Form: Blank verse

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