You come to see with time
That you may have done it your way
But you did not do it all alone,
Nor are you as capable as you
Thought you were in youth.

You see Aunt Ruthie's old coffee table from forever
And discover for the first time
That it is made of solid cherry, knowing -
With a proper dash of workmanship
It can be transformed from frump to quiet elegance.

I write of more than a piece of furniture.

Bill Grace

http://www.poemhunter.com/poem/apology-to-ancestors/