Rereading Charles Bukowski As Old Age Approaches Poem by Warren Falcon

I cut many
a poetry tooth
on old Buke

who seemed so
dangerous then

but reading him
now

old age coming
on

he's delicate

thin

like old chamois
used a life time

to polish shelved
things

long forgotten

eventually given
away

pawned shopped
or sold in

a garage sale

or yard


There's a
lingering
gaze though

as it leaves the
hand

double wrapped
in newspaper

placed in the
plastic sack


a sudden recall

some rule about
breaking open

the heart warning


Don't look back



Later

washing dishes

the kitchen table
emptier

you miss what
was sold


Later

midnight
at that table

remember

the old
teacher

smiling,

balancing
a thin tea
cup on the
flat of his
trembling
palm


says

Don't worry
so much
about

understanding
everything

about
doing it
all right

cuz space is
curved


You can't fall off
the universe