Wise Word's of Worry

My Grandfather always told me that there was no time for worrying,
He would say to me,
‘Darling, life’s too short to squander on over thinking’,
‘Live with greatness, rather than think of it’.

I could never understand what he expected a five year old to get from this,
Until the day came where I grew up,
An insignificant chess piece to a playing board splattered with dread,
And so I began to worry.

I worried for my final year of exams,
I worried about moving out,
Passing that interview,
Paying the bills,
Surviving the first date,
Surviving the second, third and fourth date,
Keeping my cool,
Losing weight for a wedding dress,
How to tell my parents I was pregnant,
How to tell my parents I was pregnant again,
How there first day at school was,
How to get the leak under the sink fixed,
As well as some insignificant piece of our family car’s engine that only mechanics seem to know of.

And as if middle aged years weren't enough,
The moment I turned 50 I worried some more,
About the menopause,
Life insurance plans,
That twinge I kept getting in my chest after doing two flights of stairs,
Living on a pension,
Finding out our first daughter was pregnant,
Finding out our second daughter was pregnant,
And before I knew it time had stopped.

And when I had passed the best part of seventy years of my life,
I remembered,
A few little words my Grandfather told me,
About worrying,
And I stopped.

I understood his words,
And where I went wrong,
Repeated them to my Grandchildren,
When they were just five years old,
They listened for a moment and carried on playing,
Running off up the garden,
Not taking notice of a thing I had said,
And once I’d shared those words,
Let my wisdom set free,
I felt a sudden great comfort,
Forgot about worrying and let the questions in my mind,
Finally rest in peace.