When very young, I was confused
Exactly who was who
When starting school, quite overwhelmed
With all there was to do
In junior high, I was depressed
About the other sex
In high school, I sank lower in
All life’s other respects
I tried to join the Air Force, but
That didn’t go too well
And college raised more questions
That bewildered me, as well
Like how to earn a living and
How to become grown up
And why you should stop drinking after
Your beer’s been thrown up
My early working years, chaotic
New quirks came to light
Like: while I’m good at math
That doesn’t mean my checkbook’s right
And dating was disorienting
That game, so unreal
Like how you must pretend
Your heart’s desire’s no big deal
But somehow, I got married, and
Perhaps oddest of all
I had to learn to hold her purse
While standing in the mall
And children are confounding, they
Are so mixed-up inside
Because, of course, they’re just like us
Completely mystified
I did divorce, that’s all a blur
She wanted someone other
The day your wife merely becomes
Your ex, your child’s mother
Remarriage and stepchildren brought
A new type of chagrin
To realize your ill-equipped
For the role you’re now in
And now, I am past fifty-three
Retirement is looming
And life’s complexities will grow
At least, I am assuming
Because our minds try to make sense
Out of what is too great
We sometimes only stop to breathe
The second
It’s too late
