Those Fleeting Years Poem by Andrew W.K. Yip

Away those fleeting years and prime,
Even lingering in quietness - the tyranny of time,
Here am I with just some baggage,
Odd pieces of old belongings in the luggage,
And a scrapbook with turbid thoughts and images,
Even things untold, words unspoken, on its pages.

Yet I must go forward, forgive and forget
Limping along a lonesome lane of regret
Leaving behind memories too sad to recall
Still to stay strong; not to falter, nor fall;
That I might grow older, but wiser through His light,
And follow a footway both right and bright.

T's grace that has kept me to this day
And taught my soul to pray,
He held me up and set my feet upon a rock,
Upon which raging tempests cannot mock,
Even dark clouds can scarcely climb,
When I rise with firm faith and hope sublime.

And now time-tested like tempered steel
And absolved believing love and salvation real,
I remain strong with a new vision,
Ragged though I am, yet with conviction,
I stand true, trusted and tall,
And with God's grace and this all,
Is to start, always anew, and wait -
Outside of heaven's gate - even this late!