Bert Meyers: Old

Last Thursday, the Bert Meyers reading at Black Oak Books was packed with a very impressive lineup of readers, including the likes of Robert Hass and Morton Marcus.

Daniel Meyers, son of Bert, currently lives in Paris and he flew to the US specifically for the launching of his father's posthumously published book. He kicked off the reading and selected several poems to share with us. One of the poems which really moved me was "Old" from The Wild Olive Tree (1979):

Their children were gone;
almost everyone
they loved and half
of what they understood,
has disappeared.

But the door's still open,
the porch light's on;
a little wind at night
and they hear footsteps
when a few leaves fall.

This poem reminds me of my parents who are now living alone in TX, two lonely lovebirds rattling around their old new house. Now that my brother is here in CA, they feel even farther away, more distant and separated than ever, from their grown children. Whatever it is that keeps them happy must be what keeps Meyers's old couple happy.