graying ears.

like god,
they watch their children grown old
before they do and
lose control of their back legs almost completely.

and when their children become elderly with
graying ears and eyes filmy blue,
and refuse to
eat any food they have to chew,
and when the cancer on his hip is too far into the bone
for the surgery to make much of a difference,
the parents take away the pain
and place their children's ashes on the mantle.