Oh, those ordinary days,
Days of sameness,
Days of summer idleness,
When Mama threw us out of the house,
With a stern command, 'GO! Play! '
Off to the woods we went,
On the trail of a spy needing to be caught,
Or a cowboy to rescue from a wild indian,
Or Batman and Robin, ready to save Gotham.
Bicycle wheels flashed silver in the sun,
Or roller skate wheels sparked flames
From the sidewalk as we flew by,
And many a story was read
As we lay in the old porch swing,
Fighting off pirates and hooligans
On a daily basis.
But OH, those days of grand occasions,
After days and days of anticipation,
Not to mention preperation!
Was it Grandmother's Birthday
Or the Fourth of July,
When we made homemade ice cream
With strawberries, sweet from the garden,
And whipped cream, piled high
On sweet yellow cakes, fresh from the oven?
Or Dad would fetch a ripe, red watermelon,
Fresh from the springhouse,
Cold, so cold, with juice enough to paint our chins.
Or we were just as happy with a Coke,
Straight out of a tub of ice, chipped off a 50 pound block
And a nickle bag of peanuts to pour into it!
Aunts, uncles, and cousins by the dozens
Came from far and near to celebrate the day...
Whatever day it was...
I might not remember what it was for...
But I sure knew it was a Grand Occasion! !
Scarlett Treat
April 8,2009
Copyrighted
Scarlett, This is an intensely evocative work: it succeeded in evoking some of my own childhood memories. And it is supremely apparent that you are aware of how words conjure images. 'Off to the woods we went...', indeed. Beautiful, and successful, evocation!
Well, Mr Gale has it in one for sure! You have brought to me memories that were never even mine. There's talent. t x
Scarlet Treat... Your poems so sweet. Memoris out of the garden child... So imaginative and as wild. Spy make believe from years ago... Makes us happy as we know. Fond memories are so grand... We cannot wait to hear the band. Make believe land is so nice... Much better than being forced to consume a lot of over cooked, burnt rice. You write so well. God bless us all-MJG.
This poem has not been translated into any other language yet.
I would like to translate this poem
This is a very well written poem Scarlett, I loved every line and all the contents within it. A lovely, lovely piece of reminiscence of bygone days. A really great read, I thoroughly enjoyed the journey through it. Excellent. Love and hugs Ernestine XXX