I suppose I would be justified
in hating it, and I do admit
a little spite, but I tread carefully
around it for I know the consequences.
It’s fragility, seemingly sudden
and unexpected, can be infuriating,
and it has developed this tendency
to fail me in ways great and small.
While I should expect this
and I have made efforts to accept it
as graciously as possible, it makes
no apologies for its myriad failures
which in my mind are unwarranted
and increasingly unacceptable.
I’m convinced that this is inexcusable
for one so young as I, but it only
points to the fact that I am 71
so it is to be expected, and in any event
it reminds me it is the one and only
body I have and ever will have.