I place this poem on this page in memory of one I loved a great deal.
She was the light of my life for 12 years.
And when she passed beyond this mortal vale, she asked that this poem be read as her eulogy.
I place it on this page to share it with you....

In memory of
Nancy Fowler,
Born into a meaningful life on
May 23, 1940
gone from us on
April 23, 1994.

Warning
by Jenny Joseph

When I am an old woman I shall wear purple.
With a red hat which doesn’t go, and doesn’t suit me.
And I shall spend my pension on brandy and summer gloves
And satin sandals, and say we’ve no money for butter.
I shall sit down on the pavement when I’m tired
And gobble up samples in shops and press alarm bells
And run my stick along the public railings
And make up for the sobriety of my youth.
I shall go out in my slippers in the rain
And pick the flowers in other people’s gardens
And learn to spit.

You can wear terrible shirts and grow more fat
And eat three pounds of sausages at a go
Or only bread and pickle for a week
And hoard pens and pencils and beermats and things in boxes.

But now we must have cloths that keep us dry
And pay our rent and not swear in the street
And set a good example for the children.
We must have friends to dinner and read the papers.

But maybe I ought to practice a little now?
So people who know me are not too shocked and surprised
When suddenly I am old, and start to wear purple.

from the Book
"When I Am An Old Woman I Shall Wear Purple"
published by Papier-Mache Press
Edited by Sandra Martz

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