Expressions related or written through poetry convey to listeners or readers, a poet’s certain passion, knowledge, interpretation, or experience with relatable imagination.
Keeping expressions relatable to a writer’s audience depends on the writer’s ability and intuition to determine what their audience appreciates as a go-to, bookmarked, inspiration.
It’s every writer’s great pride and joy to be published and to provide contributing, worthy works for public interest that bring information, reality escape, and overall literature satisfaction.
Writing for the, what if we can inspire a reader moment, compels a poet to try. When readers Like, Comment or Follow certain author publications, those are opportune moments and author gratification.
Perhaps the publication of an author impacts a reader’s ability to get through their day with just enough strength. Continued possibilities exist with perseverance to write without hesitation.
The 2022 USA New Year sadly left behind, more than one million, would-be revelers, passionate, but now breathless casualties of Covid-19 and its variants from years 2020 and 2021.
The unassuming victims were living, contributing souls with hope for survival! Their weight of loss and cost to society is substantial. They are grievously missed by friends and loved ones.
In the early reality of old age, when the horizon comes into focus with glasses, numerous new options become viable and available to us. Upon reflecting, saving for more than half of our working years makes retirement possible, the discipline to save plausible, and security from savings stockable.
It turns out, unintended consequences become a reality as well. Sure, paid off debts, savings, a pension, Social Security, IRA’s and 401K plans make retirement possible. Owning your own home is ideal, but unsuspecting retirees have become the focus of opportunists who care less about our ideals.
We thought we’d have newfound freedom in our retirement, not just in the sense of living on our savings, but to roam freely as well. It turns out, a new sense of caution develops and hinders our free will to roam, especially alone.
To relate: my spouse and I would wait until the weekend to grocery shop for ourselves and my parents. I retired a few months earlier than my spouse, so I decided to shop during the week. This would hopefully free up my spouse and I up for the weekend.
Twice in a month I was approached in the grocery store parking lot by unknown people as I returned to my car.
On the first occasion, I saw a 30’ish year old woman conversing with shoppers a few rows away from my car. She caught sight of me and sure enough, made her way over. She said, “Ma’am, I don’t mean to bother you, but…”. I felt isolated and compromised, so I excused myself and left, rather than speak with her.
On the second occasion, I was returning to my car in a more populated area when I saw a 40ish year old, physically fit man, hurriedly traversing the store parking lot. Fortunately for me, he cut through the lot short of my row, only to circle back to ask, “Do you need some help loading your groceries?”
I said, “No thank you”, but he lingered and asked: “What do you make of all this pandemic?” I was wearing a mask. He wasn’t, so I said: “Maybe the best we can do is to wear a mask!” He then said, “Is Jesus in any of that?” Again, I excused myself and left.
Once at home, I shared with my spouse the two recent encounters. We agreed that we didn’t have these types of experiences shopping together, so we decided to resume doing so. We also agreed on a plan should future awkward encounters present.
Prior to shopping alone and to avoid surprises in grocery store parking lots, consider your courses of action should unexpected encounters occur. Minimally, you might consider holding your key fob, either as a weapon or to press panic to honk your horn.
The phenomenon of reaching retirement resembles a cocoon. The cocoon shell protects us to survey the market, secure a career and save for retirement after the last time clock punch.
To work at peak performance, after a few occasions of staying up too late, we learn to set a bedtime.
To awake for work, now that our bedtime is reasonable, we do snooze, but set an alarm clock.
To refresh, we bathe, shave, pluck, tuck, dress and then pose in front of our mirror to see ourselves as perhaps others would.
Once we think we’re looking good, we pack our lunch, warm our car, drive the distance, park the car, and then walk, or run, to punch the clock at work.
We work until it’s time to punch the clock again, at the end of our shift. We repeat these steps as often as it takes to retire.
Once retired, we reset our alarm clock from alarm to snooze, and oh do we! The retirement adrenaline rush totally disregards bedtimes and alarms.
The alarm clock abandonment is celebration-certified, it’s totally complacent and life changing forevermore.
In the new retirement moonlight, while workers sleep and tea steeps, the newly opened cocoon reveals a beautiful new you!
There was to be a party, a celebration to last the whole year. We were to bring our good times and our laughter too. We were going to celebrate. A party was due.
Instead, we had a masquerade, a masquerade to last the whole year. There were no good times, nor any laughter too. We couldn’t celebrate though a party was due.
People all around the world were to celebrate, celebrate with laughter and their loved ones too. Everywhere around the world, a party was due, a pending celebration.
We’re here together now, to celebrate resilient life, amazing science and to re-unite, no longer defiant. It’s time to come together. It’ up to us to celebrate one-another.
Gather now people. Let’s emerge! Celebrate life! Celebrate those we love. Listen for their echoes and hear their laughter too. Celebrate forever, lives gone far too soon.
Let’s celebrate, elevate humanity. Let’s have a good time. It’s alright. Come on people now, celebrate our diversity. We’re going to have a good time tonight. Celebrate!
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Joyce Lynn Eggleston
Indianapolis, IN – June 2021
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Inspired by 6/18/2021 Fort Ben Cultural Campus Grand Opening, Theater at the Fort with Indianapolis Jazz Band, Crossroads Dance and Poets Laureate Arts for Lawrence Celebration.
INspire Songs & Poetry in Rhythmic Essays 
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