The Old Man

The old man was on the bank down by the lake,
Sitting in silence in his wheelchair,
A blanket was over his upper thighs,
There was nobody else around there.

He reminised of the days that had gone by,
His childhood way back in the day,
His friends and the antics they got up to,
And the countless number of days they would play.

He remembered his first ever girlfriend,
A pretty young thing that lived down the road,
They used to get up to all sorts of mischeif,
He had a love for her that would never erode.

He battled the enemy out across the sea,
In a land far away from this place,
He saw his mates dying all around him,
He remembers the look on their face.

His girlfriend and him finally got married,
And had a few kids along the way,
So happy in love and still caring,
Then one day their children moved away.

Retirement years were a blessing,
He'd strictly maintain their lovely land,
Sometimes he would think of a construction,
And his kids would come lend a hand.

Years went by surrounded by his family,
His kids had kids of their own,
He had to get a bigger meal table,
For his grand kids were rapidly growing.

A year ago his wife finally died,
A long battle with that curse cancer,
He never thought of leaving his home ever,
For away from here was really not the answer.

Because of his health and lack of visitors,
His house is slowly decaying away,
But he'd get out of bed and come down the lake,
A ritual he has been doing each day.

The cold wind around him started blowing,
A tear fell and he would just sit and sigh,
He grabbed the blanket from around his legs,
And pulled it up on him nice and high.

He smiled as he thought of his own life,
As his breathing started going all over the place,
He thought of his kids and his darling wife,
As a blank look washed all over his face.

The cold wind whipped his white hair,
As his time on this Earth was now done,
He was a happy man for long, long time,
He certainly had so much fun.