Young at Heart (a villanelle)

“Wanderlust” is a word English borrowed from German. It describes the desire to travel, when enjoyment comes mainly from the journey, rather than the destination. The “travel” here is usually thought of as literal, physical—but does it need to be?

Humans have a tendency to settle as they age, though I do not believe the spirit of wanderlust settles, but changes forms.

Young at Heart

Let me indulge my aging wanderlust
To places where the sirens lead me on,
I wish to brush my fingers free of rust

Let me be ships that sail in gale and gust
Across horizons in their ruby dawn,
Let me indulge my aging wanderlust

My present days are littered thick with dust
The sails upon the mast are tightly drawn,
I wish to brush my fingers free of rust

What storms alight when dreams from youth adjust,
When guiding bowsprits’ sculptures are long gone?
How to indulge my aging wanderlust?

Hulls curl and grip the land’s hard, aching crust
I rest upon the beach of time’s anon—
And here is where my fingers gather rust

So I’ll become the sailors-wind I trust,
Bow down and leave my keel of mulch upon
A wish to brush my fingers free of rust—
Let me indulge an ageless wanderlust

…

Cover Photo: A.I. generated with NightCafe