I

should be

wiser

than I was.

Memory

composes a story

of shames and amazements.

The shames I closed

inside myself,

but the amazements,

at a sun streaked wall,

at the thrill

of an oriole,

a face,

an iris,

a volume of poems,

a person,

endure and return

in brightness.

Such moments lifted me

above my lameness.

-Czeselaw Milosz , Polish Nobel Laureate in Literature

 I don’t necessarily

feel wiser as I age.

However,

I do remember

coming upon similar challenges

at earlier times and

hoping that what I learned

would help me.

It is natural

to assume that age

will confer wisdom.

It is really a hope

that I will remember-and

act on-what

I’ve learned

from life’s experiences.

Sometimes,

I realize

that asking

“is this mine?”

 is the question

to ask myself.

Often

the quiet answer

comes and

it is “NO”.