I wrote “Thirty-Five
and Holding” (Daydreams, 2004)
when I was thirty-five (surprise!). I had just been named President of a new
subsidiary of Avco Corporation and was traveling constantly while we set up a
support group in the Middle East. I had two young children and we had just
moved to Houston, Texas.
I was at a point with a Fortune 500 company where I could
make an enormous career jump if I executed this new assignment correctly. The
pressure was substantial and the atmosphere unforgiving.
While on a trip to Saudi Arabia, I sat down one night and
wrote this poem. I used rhyme because it helped to portray the feelings of one
riding a merry-go-round without an off switch. And I subtitled it (A Country Song) because we were living in Texas and it seemed like it
would make a great subject for lots of people going through a variety of
different struggles with jobs and young families.
As I look back, I still feel that it captured the emotions
of those years pretty well.
Glenn K. Currie
(A Country Song)
Got
a house owned by bankers,
And
a job without no friends,
But
the pay is really something,
My
future’s without end.
Yeah,
I’m thirty-five and holding,
And
I’m livin’ on the run,
But
I’m thinkin’ of the glory,
The
good times still to come.
My
family doesn’t know me,
I’m
a stranger at the door,
Just
empty out the suitcase,
And
fill it up with more.
Cause
I’m thirty-five and holding,
There’s
lots of time for fixin’ that,
Just
bring the kids a present,
Read ‘em “The Cat
in the Hat”.
The windows are
never open,
No matter where I
go,
And the scenes of
life are hidden,
By the TV’s
steady glow.
Still I’m
thirty-five and holding,
And my grip is
really strong,
I can’t let the
empty feeling,
Make it all go
wrong.
Have some coffee
in the mornin’,
And clear the
evening haze,
Opportunities
before me,
To fill the busy
days.
When you’re
thirty-five and holding,
You are fighting
for the ring,
You can’t ever
lose the focus,
Success, the only
thing.
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