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John T. Baker

On A Friend's 65th Birthday

Now you're up to the legal speed limit
And are cruising at just sixty-five;
If your headlights at times may be dim, it
Doesn't mean that's the end of your drive.
You may think as the hour grows later
That the best of the journey is past,
That the bumps and the ruts will be greater
And the road only potholes at last.
But unless you're a cynic or martyr
You will find that the truth is instead
That the farther you go you get smarter
And the highway is smoother ahead.
So relax and have fun while you're driving,
Put your worries and fears on the shelf;
If you concentrate, friend, on surviving,
Then the rest will take care of itself.