Admonitions come fast and furious,
Like a winter ice storm,
When, as advised by the weather bureau,
You’ve dressed lightly.
The less you do, the less
You are able to.
One says, take your pills, the other
That all this pill-taking is dangerous,
So be sure, at least, to reduce the dosage.
It is like I thought my castle was impregnable,
But now I’m being besieged from all sides;
I can already see the heads of my tormentors
Peeking in over the walls:
My children, calling on the phone, as if incidentally,
Are ready with their advice. Today, they say,
Maybe you shouldn’t be driving so much;
And tomorrow, I guess, it will be
Isn’t it time you gave up your license?
And perhaps, ready or not, I’ll find myself
Locked away in a Nursing Home.
And even my wife, herself similarly harassed,
Quietly hands me a bottle
Of some allegedly muscle enervating drink.
It’s good for you, she says.