sometimes miracles are not what they seem

 
stopped into my favorite  
local bakery this morning  
on my way to work  
 
the old lady behind the  
counter took my order
 
bagged the baked goodies
and rang them up
 
she said to me,
 
"I don't know what's wrong
 with my fingers today? They
 just don't seem to want to
 work!"
 
"Maybe it's the rain and damp
 this morning," I responded
 
then I told her how my hip
can get all stiff and achy
sometimes in this type of
weather
 
"Well I had BOTH of my  
hips replaced!" she said
 
"But the dammed thing  
 is that when I walk now,
 one of them SQUEAKS!"
 
we both laughed
 
and there it was
 
a rite of passage met
and passed on this dark,  
chilly and rainy morning  
 
two souls,
elongated by time
 
talking aches and pain  
and the miracle  
of living long  
enough to  
be called
old