Pantoum

Writing a poem about something that keeps reoccurring...

A pantoum is a poem made of quatrains (four‑line stanzas) where lines repeat in a specific pattern. It originated in Malay oral poetry and was later adapted into French and English literature.

The magic of the pantoum is that it creates a sense of:

• circling back

• deepening

• echoing

• revisiting

• remembering

Perfect for writing about something in your life that keeps resurfacing.

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Statistically, the number of new friendships shrinks as we get older, not because people lose the capacity, but because social structures change. However, only 10% of older adults report having no close friends. This suggests that health and mobility—not age—is the biggest barrier to forming or sustaining friendships. Retirement reduces daily social exposure and networks fade. Statistically, people like me—engaged, curious, spiritually grounded—are among the most likely to form new friendships in later life. What is wrong with me?

I Wish I Were a Clubhouse

Don’t stop me I need to be hard on myself right now.

I wish I were a clubhouse that could hold dozens of people

who never stop talking. None of them listen.

It’s not that I’m a bundle of quiet, I have plenty of internal noise.

I wish I were a clubhouse where dozens of people gather.

Which gets me no friends or people I want to spend time with.

It’s not that I’m a bundle of quiet, I talk to myself.

There comes a time when I need physical company,

Which might or might not create a friendship.

I need to reach out more. To whom? An elderly corner barstool?

There comes a time when I need someone in my space.

Where to find people?

I need to reach out more but where? An elderly corner barstool?

Where people never stop talking and only the bartender listens.

I don’t know how to make friends anymore.