poetry
do you
remember
that summer
we met
we tried
to create
a forever love
I entered denial
when you
disappeared
without
warning —
not even
a phone call
I wonder
who came
into your
life
I waited
years
for your call
that never arrived
I ask myself each day
when I should give up
waiting for you
to return
life has been good to me
i’ve had a life of luck
started working as a paperboy at age 14
saved my money
have friends who are loyal
i’ve done lots of work
some i liked
some i didn’t
saved enough money
to get me
to my end
time passed fast
i live a simple life
in a cabin
i can afford water, food
& have enough cash to keep the lights on
almost no one stops by
i have a cell phone but it’s turned off
unless i need to make a call
i stay up late
i sleep till noon
i eat cheap food from dollar stores
my recreation is reading books
& listening to music
what more could i want
during this autumn of life
why work
since i
now
have it all
(Jim Wortham, June 10, 2022)
dear connie
if you
are reading this
do you
remember
falling in love
on cocoa beach
one
summer?
wonder
what happened
that we
never
stayed
in touch?
If we
met again
what would
it be
like
after
all these
years?
She can’t explain it &
I’m without words
10 days ago she had a dream
to go to a certain bookstore
and something special
would happen
She went every day
for 10 days
and on the 10 day
I was looking at poetry
books searching for
the newest books
by favorite poets
She was there
standing two feet away
and asked me if I had a
favorite poet
I named three I really liked
I saw a
twinkle in her eyes
and said
may we walk to
the store’s coffee shop?
I’ll treat you to coffee and
a desert
This is how
we met
Her name is
Candance
she said
“call me Candy”
he says this a lot:
THIS IS NOT MY WORLD ANYMORE
i don’t think he has given up
he does not want to change
wants things the way they were
cell phones, kindle tablets
& Apple iPads & products
aren’t his things
he is not saying
he is wanting to exit this world
he remains inside his
apartment, shades drawn
car parked where no one
sees it
so no one
knows he is home
he doesn’t want friends
many have passed on
or stopped calling
died or moved
he says movies are not enjoyable
music–he likes a few singers
he grew up listening to
many singers are gone
drugs
or health problems
took some of them
he lives alone
has nothing to look forward to
knows four neighbors
(they don’t check on him
and he does not go to see them)
he rarely gets together with anyone
eats sardines, lunch meat
sometimes fruit
he wasn’t always this far down
in college and workplaces
those who knew him say
he was one of the best
if not the very best at everything!
all the classes from grade school
through the colleges he attended
never prepared him for changes
he is facing now
he says it’s not safe to go out
killings are happening often
now in grocery stores, churches
schools, sports bars and
drive-by random shootings
he wonders as he
sits on his couch
how the world got this way
he keeps saying
THIS IS NOT MY WORLD ANYMORE
(Jim Wortham, June 7, 2022)
What can I say
knowing tonight
is your last night
unless
a miracle appears
The doctors
unplugged
life support
You are talking
holding my hand
giving me hugs
What is on your mind
no, no
I should not
ask
You are fighting your war
the cancer
attempted to
take over
& tonight
the experts say
will be your
final bye
to life as you
have known it
I pray for
a
miracle
that only
we can
believe for
(Jim Wortham, March 4, 2022)
She tells me
“I know your age
but for me
your age is only a number”
This happens
occasionally
I am gracious
and thank them
for their sincere
compliments
I can’t really say this to them,
but you are in your 20s
and you
will change your mind
I may be able to keep up
with dancing
watching movies
and having fun
but what you don’t realize
I’m on a rapid ride that
you do not want to
take with me
My face still looks good to you
but in 10 or 15 years
you will refer to me
as your older brother
or father
Thanks for the dances
we’ve had &
thanks for the
long deep kisses
I’ll never forget
I depended on &
knew the times
buses would
pass by
buses going to all kinds of places
to work
to gatherings
to visit lonely people
to friends’ homes
places to eat
I bought a car
never needed a bus again
until I became disabled
no longer able to drive
Now buses
don’t come by anymore
there are no places I go
and no people to visit
(Jim Wortham, January 30, 2022)
It seems
each day I will do it . . .
you know, I mean
those items on a list
those things that need to be done
but you just don’t have
to do the tasks
yet
so days go by
weeks go by
I’ll tell you these things
are not fun to do
or I would do them
I’m wondering when
the right day will come
and if I will know
it’s the right day
to complete all those things
on my lists
I wonder on zero degree nights like tonight
why I gave up my jobs
to live from my writing
This year has been the worse
Editors want submissions sent by
PDF files
and I’m stuck in the days
where I mail typed manuscripts
with a return stamped envelopes
in case of it being rejected
I’m making enough for dollar store food
and keeping a heater on
Winter won’t last forever
but I’m not returning to work
I’ll remain in this worn-out house
and grow plants to eat in the spring
I’m waiting for that big day
soon to come
(I hope)
of becoming discovered
by a big publisher
making me a household name
in the writing world
(Jim Wortham, January 28, 2022)
The Broken and The Holy 