The Things I Should Have Said

The things I should have said in the past,

I didn't know how to say.

The things I want to say right now,

Constantly eat away

At inculcated inhibitions, which

Stifle apt expression

Out of the fear of uttering

A possible indiscretion.

The things I couldn't see in the past

I "see" much better now,

Such as the deep and powerful connections

Of the where and why and how.

Although there is a current diminishing

Of youthful visual acuity,

One doesn't need perfect vision

To penetrate ambiguity.

The things my ears could hear in the past

No longer sound the same.

Listening with the ears of experience

Completely changes the game.

To see with the ears and to hear with the eyes--

What a challenging perspective!--

Instead of being stuck in a pattern

That's sadly ineffective.

The things I knew so well in the past

I know right now even better.

Strict adherence to worn-out ideas

Proves to be a fetter.

If knowing is truly becoming, that means

The immeasurable range of our knowing

Is tied to our experiences and is

A direct result of growing.

George Bernard Shaw said youth

Is wasted on the young.

But maybe it's better for us to consider

Our youth as merely a rung

On the amazing ladder of life that we

Haven't ascended for naught.

We're lucky we've made it as far as we have;

The alternative's an unpleasant thought.

Knowing what I know and seeing what I see,

I'm forced to speak my mind,

Lest my silence be misconstrued

As agreement, which I find

Would contradict what I have learned

And what experience reveals.

Moreover, I can't justify

Abandoning my ideals.

(11-16-14) By Bob B