I was sick, so I stayed in the house all day,
But then I got well, so I went out to play.
I went to the playground—my friends were not there—
It was a new crowd, but I didn’t care.
I’d make all new friends and I’d learn all their names,
I’d strike up my courage and try out new games.
There was jump-rope and softball and even croquet.
I loved the beautiful sun-shiny day,
Because I had stayed in the house all day.
I ran and I jumped and I skipped and I walked,
I stood and I laughed and I joked and I talked.
Then a kid called me grandpa—I thought that was odd—
It took me aback as I hemmed and I hawed.
Perhaps I had said what I read in a book,
And that’s why he gave me that strange, piercing look.
I ran and I jumped and I skipped and I walked,
I stood and I laughed and I joked and I talked.
I loved the beautiful sun-shiny day,
But wherever I went, no one asked me to play.
I tried to make friends, but I just couldn’t bond,
I wandered, discouraged, and looked at the pond.
There were ducks and some geese and a little toy boat,
A castle of sand complete with a moat,
And I saw an old man who delights in the day.
In his mind he’s a child, but his hair has turned gray—
It was my face in the pond that I saw!
I realized then what I was and was not,
I was sick a lot longer than even I thought.
I went home and I stayed in the house all day.