Elder Verse

"Elder Verse" is a collection of 100 poems. The book's name confirms that it is a book of free verse, written by an elder. The introductory poem cites the similarity of the book's name with the flower and song, "Edelweisse" which is depicted on the front cover. The poems cover topics of poetry, dreams, exercise and games, family and pets, happiness and guilt, history, medicine and health, modern life, nature and travel.



About the Author



Richard F. Leighton, M.D. is a cardiologist and professor of medicine at Mercer University School of Medicine, Savannah branch. A native of Oakland, Garrett County, Maryland, he received an A.B. degree from Western Maryland College (now McDaniel College) and an M.D. degree from the University of Maryland in 1955. Following an internship at University Hospital, Baltimore, he served as a U.S. Navy flight surgeon with Airborne Early Warning Squadron One, based in Hawaii and Guam. He completed a residency in internal medicine and a fellowship in cardiology at Ohio State University where he served as a faculty member for nine years. In 1974 he was appointed Chief of Cardiology and in 1990 Vice President for Academic Affairs and Dean of the School of Medicine at the Medical College of Ohio (now the University of Toledo College of Medicine). In 1997 he relocated to Savannah, Georgia. Dr. Leighton is the author or co-author of over 90 publications in the field of cardiovascular medicine and the author or co-author of four recent books: "Dear Folks: A Memoir from 500 Letters" in 2016; "From Guam and Beyond: Stories of the Men of VW-1" in 2018; "Reflections of a Hessian" in 2019; and "80 Poems by Two Octogenarians" in 2020. His family includes three children, three grandchildren and one great grandchild.