They Would Have Requested His Tongue Poem by Lawrence S. Pertillar

ooo...
I want to cuss so bad.

'Why don't you? '

I spent no time in the Navy.
Just a few years in the Air Force.
And we were trained to intellectualize our lives.
With a boring done of achievements made and attempted.

My dad,
On the other hand...
Had been a Merchant Marine.
He could box, cuss and swim at the same time.
And if he was alive...
I'm sure they would have requested his tongue,
To exhibit in The Smithsonian.

I would love to sit and hear him pronounce f's and t's...
Where there wasn't any.
He was highly creative and I miss him dearly.

'What cuss words do 'not' have f's and t's in them? '

Exactly!
That's what I'm saying.
He created his own!
And offended those who understimated his talents!
He was a very gifted man.