An Old Friend

My friend is the coolest, greatest guy?
Loves the grey cold wintery sky.
Never complain about anything?
Looks forward to whatever the seasons bring.

He is a perfect gentle man?
Adjusts to life the best he can.
He’s visited my life for 70 years
and has witnessed many childhood cheers.

He’s a friend that comes and goes?
often leaves when the spring wind blows.
He wears a brown treed Stetson hat
and loves a kindly touch or pat.
His sparkling eyes are as dark as coal?
a smiling face is always his goal.
He’s sure a man with a distinctive style,
his pipe, held firmly within his smile.

He sports a long, snappy scarf of wool
that the neighborhood dogs always try to pull.
He’s been around for such a long, long time,
yet year after year ? he’s still in his prime.

He’s strictly a cold weather type of guy,
so when he leaves, I just smile and nod goodbye.
I will cherish him as long as I can
because, all along ? leaving was part of the plan.
? Claudia Gooden
Springfield Township