J.J. Campbell

and the older you get

all these remedies, potions 
and pills trying to let you 
escape the pain

all the while, i’m more 
interested in embracing 
it

i had a doctor tell me 
once pain is how you 
know you’re alive

so is love

and the older you get

the more you realize 
just how much both 
go hand in hand

the lucky ones will 
have some flowery 
retort to this

the rest of us have 
no choice but to 
live in reality