The question “What Genuinely Terrifies You?” was posed on Reddit and the overwhelming consensus was not war, cancer or being destitute.
It was dementia.
One responder who goes by the name of Poem_for_you Sprog commented in verse, a sentiment that gleaned over 4000 responses. Here is the poem:
If I should last to see the night
When all my thoughts are old –
I hope the string that holds them tight
Is safe, secure, and bold.
I do not want those secret seams
To fray; to free; to breach –
I do not want my dearest dreams
To lie beyond my reach.
I do not want the twilight knife
To cut and blind and blur –
I do not want to grasp at life,
And all the things that were.
For I could ride the end astride,
And face the finish, free –
As long as I’m the same inside.
As long as I’m still me.