the stealing of the sunset years

their sunset years were stolen,

not by the caution thrown to the wind

that others might follow,

but rather by the onset of

illness,

which struck them like a band of

tropical storms,

one after the other, each seeming to inflict

more damage than the one that came

before &

no matter how much money they set aside

to enjoy those last years of their lives

which had been promised to them by

good ol’ uncle sam,

when they were younger,

the health care system

stirring ugly & worthless

in the bowels of that same

fraudulent uncle,

did its worst,

totaling up bills that could never be paid,

offering experimental treatments

that just didn’t work,

instilling panic & worry

at the time when they needed an atmosphere devoid of stress,

the most---

and the sun doesn’t wait to set.