The Ballad of Bill

Thank you for the tale of your amazing life and all the advice you gave us for ours.

-Lucas and Sam

The Ballad of Bill Fiylk

It was a dusky day with chilling airAnd snow piled all around.

The sky was grey, and I must say,

The sun could not be found.

Perhaps the weather had dulled my soul,

Perhaps I need to confess

That I was feeling mighty blue

From mortality and from stress.

But chance may have it that in my luck,

And on that dusky day,

That I met a man by the name of Bill

And this is what he had to say:

You seem nice boy, you from the city?

Ya’ see I grew up on a farm.

My hips do suck from riding horses

(But that didn’t hinder his charm).

Now as I grew up I tried many things,

(He sighed as he emptied his lung)

I tried to join the Air Force,

But they said that I was just too young.

So I packed my bags and left home

With only four bucks to my name.

I headed west to Vancouver,

For my mechanics license to claim.

Of course I found a lot of work,

I put my mechanic skills to the test,

But on top of that I’d sing and strum

My guitar with zeal and zest.

I made my way back East,

Got a real job and some rest,

I guess the moral of that story is,

“Whatever you do, go for the best.”

It was at this point of his story

That I took notice of Bill’s eyes,

Like murky light blue water,

Or cloudy, piercing skies.

His hands were gaunt with thinning skin,The digits were rough and bent,

The white hairs approached the calloused palms,

They looked like a life well spent.

And on his face a cheery glow

Of ecstasy in his cheeks,

I can see from the age that Bill may be,

He’s overcome many peaks.

So I built up the courage to ask the man,

About what he’s overcome,

The hardest obstacle he has faced,

And he responded looking glum:

Now in my life, I have faced

A difficult thing or two,

But perhaps the worst of all of these

Was the loss of my first wife, who

I did lose, as is our lives,

We’ll never know why or when.

You may get married once or twice,

But we all learn to love again.

You can sit around and wait,

Or you can give up and quit.
But “nothing gets done by itself,

You have gotta do it.”

I thanked him for his time,

As my uncertainty he had fought,

From his story and his words

I had learnt a lot.

That to live your life was to try,

To try, and try some more,

Give your best and all you’ve got,

Until you’re too good to ignore.

With a handshake and a farewell,

And a blessing to all his ilk,

I left the company of the man,

By the name of Bill Fiylk.

Unknown. “Old Man’s Hands.” Photo. pinterest Unknown. Dec. 14, 2017. <https://www.pinterest.ca/explore/old-hands/>