Aging Poems

Aging Poems

Poems about Growing Old

Aging is a natural process of life. It begins the moment we are born. Strangely enough, most of us live under the illusion that we and our loved ones will never become old. When old age arrives, we are often unprepared. The natural order becomes reversed. The young help to care for the old. Those who need to be taken care of for the first time have a hard time accepting that they need help. This condition is a product of our culture that does everything it can to conceal the loss of youth. Confronting this reality is the beginning of a healthy relationship to life, aging and death.

44 Inspirational Poems about Aging

1 - 20 of 44

  1. 1. The Forgotten Mother

    • By Ruby Latimer Edwards
    • Published by Family Friend Poems November 2006 with permission of the Author.

    A gray old woman sits all alone,
    Unloved, uncherished, and unknown.
    Sitting beside her broken door,
    Dreaming of days passed long ago,

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    • Stories 75
    • Shares 2993
    • Favorited 42
    • Votes 2971
    • Rating 4.50
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    In March 2022, I was diagnosed with Renal cancer. I'm doing fine following up with my CTs. My kids' dad was diagnosed with hepatic cancer, lung, the works, and passed away in March. My (our)...

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  3. 2. Living With Dementia

    • By Annabel Sheila
    • Published by Family Friend Poems July 2008 with permission of the Author.

    She's trapped inside the prison walls
    That used to be her mind.
    The woman that she used to be,
    Has long been left behind.

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    • Stories 20
    • Shares 1270
    • Favorited 24
    • Votes 1092
    • Rating 4.47
    Featured Shared Story

    Would love to read some of your experiences. I am currently caring for and have two care givers looking after my 80 year old mother.

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  5. 3. I Still Matter


    I'M STILL HERE

    My looks are nothing special,
    My face reveals my age,

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    • Stories 17
    • Shares 12060
    • Favorited 168
    • Votes 2510
    • Rating 4.59
    • Poem of the Week
    • Poem of the Day
    Featured Shared Story

    This poem really hit home with me. I will be 60 on my next birthday and it seems like years fly by like days. I too look in the mirror and wonder where all the lines and wrinkles have came...

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  6. 4. I'm A Person Too


    • By Dawn Mazzola
    • Published by Family Friend Poems December 2010 with permission of the Author.

    Here I lie in bed again, Awaiting my next meal.
    A worker barges in my room, As if it's no big deal.

    What ever happened to courtesy? Just a little knock.

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    • Stories 16
    • Shares 2873
    • Favorited 49
    • Votes 1473
    • Rating 4.64
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    I too worked as a CNA for 15 plus years and then I choose to do private home health care. I always respected my residents and my private clients and demanded that everyone else did. They each...

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  7. 5. Changing Places

    • By Alora M. Knight
    • Published by Family Friend Poems August 2015 with permission of the Author.

    I see the sadness in your eyes,
    The times that you are knowing
    What's happening to your wondrous mind,
    The symptoms you are showing.

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    • Stories 6
    • Shares 1945
    • Favorited 58
    • Votes 535
    • Rating 4.58
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    Memories! I was 53, he 54 when the complications of Alzheimer's took him. At his prime as an exporter, his secretary fell for him. I left and visited Canada for 3 months, but on my return,...

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  8. 6. The Little Boy And The Old Man

    Famous Poem


    Said the little boy, sometimes I drop my spoon.
    Said the little old man, I do that too.
    The little boy whispered, I wet my pants.
    I do too, laughed the old man.

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    • Stories 5
    • Shares 4453
    • Favorited 40
    • Votes 822
    • Rating 4.57
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    I admit I didn't know Shel Silverstein until I bought a couple of sheets of stamps with his name on each stamp and a silly little sketch of a cartoonish little girl. "Who is Shel...

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  9. 7. The Hands Of A Warrior

    Purple veins strain against the skin.
    Pale, translucent, paper thin.
    Skinny fingers clawed in monstrous shapes,
    Brown spots from years that she can't erase.

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    • Stories 5
    • Shares 3401
    • Favorited 40
    • Votes 675
    • Rating 4.54
    • Poem of the Day
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    Dear Angie,
    I should have responded much sooner to your beautiful comment about my poem. I am so thrilled that you could completely relate to my words and then share them with others to help...

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  10. 8. Clearing The Way

    • By Alora M. Knight
    • Published by Family Friend Poems September 2017 with permission of the Author.

    I have waited quite a long time to get old,
    So I think I should try to enjoy it.
    I can't turn it in for a refund,
    And I surely don't want to destroy it.

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    • Stories 5
    • Shares 2660
    • Favorited 31
    • Votes 339
    • Rating 4.45
    Featured Shared Story

    It is genuinely a beautiful poem depicting the harsh reality of life that many of us don't really know how to handle the unwanted changes that old age brings with it. One always lives in this...

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  11. 9. Kid Stuff

    Many, many years ago
    When I was just a kid,
    And I had just began to grow,
    There's stuff I had and did.

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    • Stories 3
    • Shares 2216
    • Favorited 30
    • Votes 449
    • Rating 4.49
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    Ah, blissful childhood memories. Raised in a rural community, most relatives and friends lived on farms. Being a town kid, homemade fried chicken dinners in an oversized farm kitchen, that...

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  12. 10. I Am Not Old

    My eyes are fine; they are just printing words small.
    I just use a walking stick to seem stately and tall.

    Nothing is wrong with my sense of smell.

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    • Stories 2
    • Shares 6853
    • Favorited 65
    • Votes 1037
    • Rating 4.33
    Featured Shared Story

    Very nicely described and also the way it became funny was absolutely fantastic.

  13. 11. Remember Then

    • By Catherine Cordeiro
    • Published by Family Friend Poems June 2015 with permission of the Author.

    When you feel bad for what you say
    Remember your mom wasn't always this way.
    She is your mom and used to be
    A woman who cared, much like me.

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    • Stories 2
    • Shares 551
    • Favorited 33
    • Votes 163
    • Rating 4.53
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    My mom is not 90. She is just 66 and is in that transition phase when you begin to realize she is growing old. It is a hard thing to realize. The woman who took care of you all your...

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  14. 12. It Could Not Be Me Anymore

    It could not be me he's thinking of
    When he looks up at the soft moonlight.
    And it can't be me that he's dreaming of
    When he falls asleep at night.

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    • Stories 2
    • Shares 5
    • Favorited 0
    • Votes 6
    • Rating 4.50
    Featured Shared Story

    Another brilliant poem - I love the way you write - keep them coming, please.

    Very best wishes, Ann

  15. 13. On Aging

    Famous Poem

    When you see me sitting quietly,
    Like a sack left on the shelf,
    Don’t think I need your chattering.
    I’m listening to myself.

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    • Stories 2
    • Shares 3902
    • Favorited 35
    • Votes 479
    • Rating 4.47
    • Poem of the Day
    Featured Shared Story

    Reading this poem was very heartfelt and personal. Maya Angelou has always been my favorite author of all times, but reading this particular poem reminds me of my grandmother who I was lucky...

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  16. 14. Keepsake

    • By Mac Mckenzie
    • Published by Family Friend Poems September 2014 with permission of the Author.

    One day my dad was hunting, from his favorite hunting stand;
    'Twas a giant Oak with perfect limbs, under which two deer trails ran.
    Now this favorite spot of Daddy's was as unique as it could be,
    'cause a lightning bolt had burned a giant hole down through that tree.

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    • Stories 2
    • Shares 815
    • Favorited 9
    • Votes 198
    • Rating 4.34
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    My aging husband, who just turned 70 in October, still takes his grandsons out bowing and hunting ever year. He helps build the tree stands and everything, teaching them the way of the...

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  17. 15. Just Another Year

    • By John P. Read
    • Published by Family Friend Poems May 2019 with permission of the Author.

    The years are taking their toll.
    Another birthday has now arrived.
    People you meet say you're still looking young.
    With a smile, you wink and say, "Nice try."

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    • Stories 2
    • Shares 321
    • Favorited 5
    • Votes 53
    • Rating 4.04
    Featured Shared Story

    Age is only a number we accumulate through our journey along the path destined for us. “Just Another Year” gave our hearts a nudge. It’s all right to climb the ladder of numbers and let our...

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  18. 16. Encore!

    Those things that meant the most to me
    Are no longer in my life.
    And those people most important
    Have vanished now from sight.

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    • Stories 1
    • Shares 341
    • Favorited 42
    • Votes 115
    • Rating 4.76
    Featured Shared Story

    I just love your poems - keep writing. You inspire me to keep writing myself.

  19. 17. The Grandfather Clock

    • By James Sielschott
    • Published by Family Friend Poems September 2014 with permission of the Author.

    In a dusty, dark corner of a very old house,
    sits the tall, wooden worn out clock.
    It has seen its share of memories and pain,
    keeping perfect time with a tick and a tock.

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    • Stories 1
    • Shares 697
    • Favorited 10
    • Votes 199
    • Rating 4.37
    Featured Shared Story

    We're all clocks just trying to keep up with time, knowing full that in the end, time will win.

  20. 18. To Heck With Tech

    • By Alora M. Knight
    • Published by Family Friend Poems August 2019 with permission of the Author.

    A little old lady, I do not mind being.
    What I find I don't like are the changes I'm seeing.
    My marbles are still rolling in the right direction.
    I enjoy this old world, though it has imperfections.

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    • Stories 1
    • Shares 318
    • Favorited 5
    • Votes 88
    • Rating 4.33
    Featured Shared Story

    I enjoyed your poem. I certainly know where you're coming from. When it comes to tech, I'm not tech-savvy either. It seems like every time you get things down pat, they change the whole...

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  21. 19. On Your Shoulders

    • By Magnus I. Rasmussen
    • Published by Family Friend Poems October 2018 with permission of the Author.

    I remember the times
    You'd flip me onto your shoulder
    Freefalling skyward
    Taller, older

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    • Stories 1
    • Shares 123
    • Favorited 7
    • Votes 35
    • Rating 4.20
    Featured Shared Story

    This poem so reminds me of the relationship my Daddy and I had. He had a major surgery in 1971 and because of that and the effects of the anesthesia, his decline began. It took a while for us...

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  22. 20. Glimpses

    • By Keith Lewthwaite
    • Published by Family Friend Poems January 1, 2024 with permission of the Author.

    Early morning sun
    Dull light through the window
    A shadow crosses her face
    I catch a glimpse

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    • Stories 1
    • Shares 13
    • Favorited 0
    • Votes 11
    • Rating 4.00
    Featured Shared Story

    Having lost my husband almost exactly a year ago, I was incredibly touched by this poem. Especially as we too were married for well over 50 years. I look at photos on my photo frame all the...

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1 - 20 of 44

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