It's Still Life

A Bad Day for Smoke and Mirrors

I.
When Plato said,
Beauty lies in the eye of the beholder …
he forgot about mirrors.

II.
And who said
Only good comes from self-revelation.

My frame is tipsy with gravity
and in need of scaffolding,

my knees crack when I stand,
a noise to wake the dead,

my eyelids
droop as if I’m half asleep,

my nose drips
though I’ve not caught a cold,

me, plucker
of grey hairs from my chin,

my eyes are failing, but my
hearing is good. I hear them say,

“Look at that poor old dear,
give up your seat for her, son.”

but it’s good, it seems, self-revelation,
knowing that I’m relevant, passionate,
and only confusing to some.