Medicare And Me....... [u.S. Aging Population; Government-Sponsored Medical Insurance; Personal] Poem by Bri Edwards

As I approach age 65 I've a decision to make;
should Medicare coverage be an option I'll take?
At this moment I don't think so, and I'll tell you why,
but I should talk to my mate before passing it by.

I keep hearing how the government is running out of cash,
causing spending for many fine programs to be slashed.
Social Security and Medicare payments help drain Treasury dry.
To get along without either is what I'd like to try.

Actually I don't qualify for Social Security; I'd have to work
more......
in a Social Security tax-deducting job; perhaps a food store?
The tax was not deducted when I worked for the Postal Service,
but I have an annuity and good health insurance, and I'm NOT nervous.

In two years my mate can get Medicare if she pays,
but I hope to do well without it for the rest of my days.
I'm in pretty good health but don't want to live past 75;
it's my curiosity and wife and daughter urging me to stay alive.

'Primitive societies' have let aging adults die when they became a drag....
..., when they got mentally slow and /or their bodies did sag.
I'm at the beginning of that phase. It's not my life that I hate.
But I'd hate to be a drag (if only a small one) by living too late.

(Jan.2013)