Wisdom in a Poem that I Took to Heart

A great many years ago, after several traumatic losses (I do not want to get into this, it's not the point), I came across a poem that managed to bring a new awareness to my mind. I began the process of realizing to what extent the obstacle to happiness was self-made. Reading it with this new awareness put a soothing balm on my raw pain. I made a point of keeping it. I have often re-read it, as the need arose.

After seven decades, I think that I achieved a calmness about the fact that all that lives is subject to change and eventually to loss or death. And that includes me. All fear and sadness about this inevitability are gone. This yellow flower is considered a weed but in the prime of its life, with its head turned towards the sun, I thought it was truly beautiful. Its life in full glory was short, however. Now in the final stages, head to the sun, it's still beautiful, don't you think?

Here is the poem

After a while you learn
The subtle difference between holding a hand and chaining a soul
And you learn that love doesn't mean leaning
And company doesn't always mean security.

And you begin to learn
That kisses aren't contracts, and presents aren't promises
And you begin to accept your defeats with your head up and your eyes ahead
With the grace of a woman, not the grief of a child.

And you learnto build all your roads on today
Because tomorrow's ground is too uncertain for plans
and futures have a way of falling down in mid-flight.

After a while you learn
That even sunshine burns if you get too much
So you plant your own garden and decorate your own soul
Instead of waiting for someone to bring you flowers.

And you learn
That you really can endure; that you are really strong
And you really do have worth;
And you learn and you learn; with every goodbye you learn.

I wish I knew its author to thank her for her words