All the Way Home: Aging in Haiku

The Buddha taught that everything is impermanent; that is, all things arise and pass away. If this is a holy truth–beyond religious belief systems–then each of us must find a way to make peace with the fact that we age, we grow old. Trying to resist or deny the existential reality of bodily change will only lead to suffering, if not despair; we might call it a form of senior bypassing. To embrace the changes both big and small is the fine art of living fully. There is as much cause for celebration as for lament: Beyond the changes and losses, many will observe an abundance of wisdom, courage, integrity, compassion, creativity and love. Join with the poets from around the world in these pages as they grapple poignantly and movingly with the realities of aging. Whatever your age, you are likely to find yourself both inspired and uplifted, maybe even transformed.

nursing home garden

the Kansas wind tousles

his thin hair



Randy Brooks



these Christmas lights —

how I wish my children

were still small



Lynn Edge



wheeling her chair

through leaf fall. . .

we sure knew how to dance



Bill Pauly



it’s happened

we must be truly old . . .

sounds

of our neighbour shoveling

our driveway



Naomi Beth Wakan