AN END TO AGE Let the wind blow out all the candles. Let us save our breath for better use. Years and days should not be counted. Why mark time in such a way? Let time be timeless. Age, yes, but not by checks on calendars. Let seasons come and go uncounted. The moon will wax and wane for all. The sun will rise and set the day. Buds will open and leaves fall. Birds will nest and fledglings fly. Banish that word that rhymes with 'sage' and 'rage' and 'turning page'. Let life's rhythms the breathings, the beating hearts just be while we are as old as our tongues and just a little older than our teeth. 18.04.2011 (From a workshop based on 'Stop All the Clocks' – Auden)