"Nurture to Nurtured" is my found poem from "To a Stranger" by Walt Whitman and it is written in free verse. The speaker is a parent who has a child and begins to grow old. This poem is explaining the ironic life cycle of a parent. At first it is the parent's job to raise their child. As the child becomes an adult he leaves to start his own life, only to return to take care of his now elderly parent.
Nurture to Nurtured
Born into this world you have life. You have eyes, face, flesh, and hands. You don’t know how longingly I look upon you. I used to wake up alone seeking something unknown to me. But surely you give me the pleasure I was seeking. I was left alone, but you bring me joy. You mature, You grow tall, You grow a beard. I ate with you, I slept with you, I lived with you. |
As years pass
You have become distant like a stranger. My old life is back. I again sit alone and think of you You are busy so I am to wait. I am to wait to see you again. I feel childish As you now take care of me, And I wait to speak to you. My body has become old, And I have a dream of a better day Where you are with me again. My parents went through this, Just as you will, But now I am to see to it that I do not lose you. |