Poems, Personal Stories, and Observations

Posts tagged ‘play’

In Younger Days

In younger days,
So many ways to play.
Time stretched forever
in endless summer.
I rode a bike,
Or climbed a tree,
Or rolled on skates
Or skateboard.

Those berry fights,
And flying kites!
The six-gun caps,
The endless laps
Round playgrounds.
The hide and seek,
The flowing creek
With newts to play with.

The rainy days
In oilskin coats;
We fashioned moats
And marched;
We were “The Rain Squad.”
Umbrellas? – No,
We liked the flow
Of water on our oilskin.

Collected pillbugs,
Or were they sowbugs?
Made mudpies,
And my mom allowed us.
Stayed out ‘til dinner;
That was a winner.

Those days are gone;
I don’t know how,
Or why they were
The way they were.
I only know
They’re part of me.

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Reality

I’d love to play all of a day
And dance on sunlit lawns,
But somehow light begins to dawn,
Or shall I say, the sunset comes?

I’d love to sing the glorious songs
And soak in beauteous tones,
But then, alas, reality,
Tells me that duty calls.

I’d love to read a book all day
Or sit by warming fire,
But others call upon my help,
And some – their needs are dire.

The truth, it seems, or partly so,
Is dishes, toilets, mold, and floors,
The cooking, baking, and bed making.

And don’t forget the many tasks
That little ones and spouses ask.

But one can dream, and may it be
That both can be reality,
And even at one time.

Hard work and toil —
And bounteous joy.

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To Martha

[To my childhood friend, Martha]

Muddy puddles
And balls of clay.
Rain-slick streets
And friends at play.

We wandered ‘hoods,
And built big forts.
We played in sprinklers
In polka-dot shorts.

We drank from hoses;
We played hula-hoop.
We ate salty seaweed
On the neighbor’s stoop.

We dreamed big dreams
Of solving mysteries,
We made up rhymes
With hickory-dickory.

We played recorder,
A kind of flute.
We sat on doormats
Made of jute.

On Halloween,
We made a haul.
A load of sugar,
Ten pounds in all.

We played outside,
‘Til it was dark.
We’d stay all day
At the neighborhood park.

We played mah-jong
And shared our tomes.
Your encyclopedia
You always loaned.

I don’t know where
That world has gone.
But as time travels,
It’s just begun.

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