You are only as old as you feel

And I feel like a child

Prowling the kingdoms of imagination

Unhindered, free and wild

The ache in my hip forgotten

The stiffness gone from my knees

I will make myself a crown of flowers

And blow dandelion fluff into the breeze

Too long have I been reliable

Slaved to the taskmaster of adulthood

Borne the weight of gravitas

And eschewed the simple and the good

There is more in me than sensibility

There is wonder, awe, and whimsy

And I will let go of the caretaking,

It’s their turn to care for me

I will dance when everyone is watching

I will laugh while the world is raging

They may think me addled

But that is the beauty of aging

Freed from their expectations

Like a kite to the wind unfurled

My inner child released

I will play in the beauty of the world