Older

by Charles Jensen

I watch my youth fade,
a city in the rearview
shrinking in my wake.

The way years cascade—
a decade, then two—
I watch my youth fade.

Forty-seven birthday cakes
placed end to end, a frosted queue
shrinking in my wake.

My face changes shape.
My body softens, too.
I watch my youth fade

even as my memory breaks,
everything I once knew
shrinking in my wake.
​
Time heals, but it also takes.
There’s nothing I can do.
I watch my youth fade,
shrink to nothing in my wake.

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Charles Jensen (he/him) wrote Splice of Life: A Memoir in 13 Film Genres, the poetry collection Instructions between Takeoff and Landing, and two collections of poetry and seven chapbooks of cross-genre work.