As of today
I’ve been around
three-fourths of a century.

The thought really
does not compute.

The oddest part,
though, is that
when I think of

that child
back in St. Louis,
at 4 or 5—

the person
behind the screen
of the body—

he’s the same person
I am today.

The child
did not speak
or act like
a grown-up,

but his awareness
and mine
are the same.

Do you find that
true of yourself?

And if so,
what are we
to make of it?

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