Belle

(Newton Highlands, MA)

Belle has arrived

She is 97 years old

With Belle, I am learning about aging

About all we have when we are still young

She has left the usual, the known, the certain

Her home, friends, and a social life

Here she cannot go out alone

The streets are unfamiliar

The terrain unknown to her

You see, Belle cannot see as much anymore

Aging has gotten her vision

And she needs to adapt to new limits now

Limits of a new place, so unaccustomed to her

Nonetheless, she is still the Belle

that she remembers from younger ages

the Belle that only exists in her mind

Her body, her appearance do not reveal her spirit

Belle has aged with grace

And understands her new position in life

that age imposes on us all

Belle has no bitterness about aging

And I am learning what I may became

Life giving me that much of time -