Frank Bruni’s new book
The Beauty of Dusk describes
the transition from his 50’s to his 60’s:
pills he takes and the minor
problems that went wrong before.
He feels exempt from Serious Problems.
His partner is a doctor.
He himself is a rigorous exerciser
young looking and in Good Shape.
He even has his hair.
But then Something Happens out of the blue.
He goes blind. And now,
every single day
we talk to friends with problems:
hips shoulders knees
blood pressure hearts eyes
hands digestion systems no matter
whether you eat vegetables or meat
do Pilates stand on your head.
I never liked the word wellness
and I like it even less now.
About thirty years ago I wrote
some poems called Body Parts.
A young St. Martin’s editor
she was confident
she was fit she was impenetrable
said Body Parts seemed like a negative spin.
I wonder what she’d think about body parts now.
Very grateful for Replacement Parts!
Such a balancing act, how to share information to empower each other without giving in to "organ recitals ", being real without being morose, grateful without descending into Pollyannaville.
And someone might always see it differently. *Sigh*