In Assorted Disarray

I see them in their terrycloth

with puzzles and their knitting

they wander halls and seem so lost

with others simply sitting –

No matter what they used to be

wealth and titles fall away

both heads of state and traffic cop

wonder what’s for lunch today –

I see them in their terrycloth

one slipper doesn’t match

one is good at Jeopardy

the bathroom door won’t latch –

Some remember grand-kids

as they live their day-to-day

A few remember yesteryear

in assorted disarray –

Tomorrow brings a vacant room

there’s Lysol in the air

One calls “Dibs” on their dessert

they’ll be an extra chair –

We see them in their terrycloth

all circling the drain,

and think if we don’t pause to look

that we’ll not see our name.

Z. Corwin