Old friends
Sat on their park bench
Like bookends.
A newspaper blown though the grass
Falls on the round toes
Of the high shoes
Of the old friends.
Old friends,
Winter companions,
The old men
Lost in their overcoats,
Waiting for the sunset.
The sounds of the city,
Sifting through trees,
Settle like dust
On the shoulders
Of the old friends.
Can you imagine us
Years from today,
Sharing a park bench quietly?
How terribly strange
To be seventy.
Old friends,
Memory brushes the same years
Silently sharing the same fears
As a teenager I never imagined that this Simon and Garfunkle song might describe me or someone of my generation. Today I saw two old freinds meeting for lunch. The shorter, fatter of the guys got there first. He seemed a bit uneasy, jotting down something in a notebook and then making a call on his cell. The other guy, taller and trimmer, showed up a few minutes later. They both smiled, sharing the long held handshake of two men who'd been through something together.
I wondered about their relationship. Were they just old freinds, cousins, brothers-in-law, business partners? It may well have been business as one of them showed the other a document and they both studied the one guy's notebook offering comments back and forth for several minutes until their order arrived. I finished my meal and got up to leave but they just sat there talking, obviously engaged in the moment and enjoying each other's company on this man date, this business lunch, whatever it was for these old friends.
A sweet slice of life.
ReplyDeletea few years ago i watched two older men walking a dog through a park. they didn't hold hands or carry any other gay stigma (except the fru-fru dog), but you could tell they were partners. it was very sweet and very natural.
ReplyDeleteVery nice. I enjoy these spottings of friendships as well. I wish that such friendships of intimacy between friends, even every so slight, need not be hidden from public view. Oh that such encounters of mine can be more open and in plain sight for all to enjoy the pounding of my heart.
ReplyDeleteAlan: Glad it suited your taste. :)
ReplyDeleteSantorio: Captured moments, even from years ago, do stay with us. We have an older lesbian couple in our neighborhood. We alway say hello to each other. Their comfort with each other and with us is such a blessing.
Beck: Thanks for the comment. I'm glad that you also enjoy such spottings, even if they're not quite of the eye candy quality you so often feature on your blog!
Touching post to think about how much relationships mean in our human interaction. Man is not meant to be alone. We need the close association of good friends.
ReplyDeleteWhat I love are friend that can be apart for years and pick up again right where they left off. Lately, I have been seeking some of these out and my life has been enriched for doing it.
Bravone: It's also fascinating when you meet someone you haven't known, but the connection is as seems as strong and sure as that of a long freind. This burned me once in a business relationship. I trusted someone because they physically reminded me of a relative. My trust was unwarranted. I'm a little more cautious now, but have still been richly blessed for taking the risk of reaching out. Even though such action is often met with indifference, it is still worth it for the new friendships which occasionally result.
ReplyDeleteHappy Father's Day. Nice post, may we all be old friends at lunch.
ReplyDeleteAgreed! And Happy Father's day to you, too, Bror. I love your photos of the beauties of our state!
ReplyDeleteSweet post! Thanks for sharing.
ReplyDelete