Growing Up Not Getting Old (Poem) Poem by Dave Tanguay

Infantile love follows the principle: 'I love because I am loved.'
Mature love follows the principle: 'I am loved because I love.'
Immature love says: 'I love you because I need you.'
Mature love says: 'I need you because I love you.' Erich Fromm

Coming from infantilism to adolescence to maturity
Stages we must fulfill to acquire humane security

Our young lives are bound by standards we must meet
For society demands credentials we must complete

Life demands more than just earning our way
We must recognize the laws we are forced to obey

Maturity comes slow to those who question our laws
For learning right from wrong we see all of our flaws

Love is to seek, to know, and especially to feel
Finding the Lord is when we began to heal

The healing process can take time and patience
For our wound is not personal - it involves all of God’s creation

To be needed and to need others is all part of God’s plan
This has been the rule ever since life began

Maturity brings wisdom, knowledge and peace of mind
Positive traits we were born with - are becoming refined

The older I get the better I feel - my soul takes control
It leads me down the road to find life’s true goal

Growing up is not getting older it’s discovering your heart
Its true purpose in life is to love and to be a part

6/4/08