Ah, dear me…this morning
I found written in the mirror
My payment for time and success:
All the miles I've traveled
Lie mapped across
My face, and such a
Dead white tinge that
Lingers.
I look in the mirror and see that
I am no longer a young man.
I suppose I thought myself handsome…
He called me prim but
Had he seen really seen what pains I took
I think he would have laughed.
---
(I did see the pains he took,
but I did not laugh;
I merely hid the words)
---
The crispest collar cannot distract
From the grey in my hair
The smartest suit will not deceive—
My shoulders are sloped too sharply, weak…
---
(he will always be strong to me…
the weaker he grows, the stronger he is.
his undying strength is in
his eyes)
---
I don't suppose I am immortal
Even the more intense fires die in the end
Perhaps they even burn out faster.
I always knew my reign would end, yet—
I cannot concede to be an ember.
---
(Ember or flame,
I will stand between you and
every wind.)