Analysis of My Thinking Problem

Randy West 1946 (Chicago)



I’m looking back upon my life and listing things done wrong.
It seems that list keeps growing and becoming far too long.
In retrospect, sometimes I know I acted like a putz.
And other times, I fear that I had gone completely nuts!  

Was this to be my legacy: A life so lived in haste?
That many things that I had done could be construed a waste.
There were events from long ago I simply can’t forget.
Some of them would be OK, but too many I regret.  

I wish that I would have the luck to find a four-leaf clover.
I’d wish myself right back in time and do some things all over.
But Grandma said that “wishing” is a game that’s played by losers.
Life is filled with options and depends on how you choose yours.  

Sadly now, I know I failed to heed my grandma’s voice.
I’d just do something stupid, and I’d make a wrongful choice.
It seems like little problems tend to get a whole lot bigger
when I don't know what to shoot at right before I pull the trigger.  

So I don’t leave my wife to feel too utterly bereft,
I’ll use my time more wisely with what little I have left.
The next time I must make a choice while standing at the brink.
I hope I’ll have the common sense to take more time to think.
 


Scheme AABB CCDD EEXX FFEE GGHH
Poetic Form Quatrain  (80%)
Metre 11010111010111 11111100010111 0100111110101 01011111110101 11111100011101 11011111110101 10011101110101 11111111110101 111111011101110 11111010111110 110111010111110 11111000111111 101111111111 11110100110101 111101011101110 1111111110111010 11111111110001 11111101110111 01111101110101 11110101111111
Closest metre Iambic heptameter
Characters 1,242
Words 258
Sentences 19
Stanzas 5
Stanza Lengths 4, 4, 4, 4, 4
Lines Amount 20
Letters per line (avg) 46
Words per line (avg) 12
Letters per stanza (avg) 183
Words per stanza (avg) 47

About this poem

Sometimes, I sit and ponder things that happened in the past and wonder how I could have been dumb enough to commit certain acts. It's hard to not wish you could go back and change things. That's especially true at my age!

Font size:
 

Written on November 09, 2023

Submitted by npirandy on December 11, 2023

1:17 min read
49

Randy West

I'm 76 years old and a combat veteran from Vietnam. I used to compose poetry while on ambush patrol as a way of staying awake on watch, since falling asleep could be hazardous to my health. I started early in life though, because, as a child, I would write little tidbits to my mom for the heck of it. more…

All Randy West poems | Randy West Books

16 fans

Discuss this Randy West poem analysis with the community:

0 Comments

    Citation

    Use the citation below to add this poem analysis to your bibliography:

    Style:MLAChicagoAPA

    "My Thinking Problem" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 31 May 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem-analysis/178175/my-thinking-problem>.

    Become a member!

    Join our community of poets and poetry lovers to share your work and offer feedback and encouragement to writers all over the world!

    May 2024

    Poetry Contest

    Join our monthly contest for an opportunity to win cash prizes and attain global acclaim for your talent.
    0
    days
    23
    hours
    0
    minutes

    Special Program

    Earn Rewards!

    Unlock exciting rewards such as a free mug and free contest pass by commenting on fellow members' poems today!

    Browse Poetry.com

    Quiz

    Are you a poetry master?

    »
    Who was the first woman to win the Pulitzer Prize for poetry?
    A Mona Van Duyn
    B Edna St. Vincent Millay
    C Edith Wharton
    D Sara Teasdale