My Take on Change

As a child I knew nothing of the middle class in
America even though I was born into that segment
Of mediocrity. I knew nothing of wealth or poverty,
But eventually grew to understand the polar oppo-
Sites in society. As a child my world consisted of
Home, neighborhood and school, baseball, bicycle,
Rocky the Flying Squirrel and Captain Kangaroo,
And occasionally some Gunsmoke when my dad
Allowed my brothers and me to stay up late on
Saturday night and watch TV. Like many other kids
I grew up with, change seemed to come in subtle
Increments, each year advancing to the next higher
Grade in school, best friends who eventually moved
Away or worse, our family uprooted and whisked
Away for supposedly a better life in a different place.
As a child, I never bought into the idea of change. I wan-
Ted things to remain forever and ever the same. Oh, I
Would get Excited for a new pair of sneakers when sum-
Mer arrived, but was heartbroken when my grandfather
Died. I was taught at home and in school that God worked
In mysterious ways, and that everything happened for a
Reason. And I prayed, and I prayed, but that never proved
Mightier than the mystery and inevitability of change.
And with change I grew: I grew taller, I grew older, I grew
More obstinate in some way, and more accepting in
Others. And in my time I traveled, I worked, I married, had
Children, divorced, I moved over and over again eventually
Retiring to take my rightful place as old and gray. The wis-
Dom some claim to have gained with experience and
Change for me was not a matter of addition and gain,
But rather a case made for subtraction and loss. I have come
To this revelation: At my age the only thing no longer subjected
To change, as I see it, is my shoe size. And, I couldn’t care less
About the mysterious ways of heaven and Earth these days.
Mostly I wear slippers, and stick close to my apartment anyway.
Chris Hanch 2-13-17