I felt like writing something whimsical today and came up with this children's poem.
Perhaps, We Are Better Off
Imagine if you were a giraffe,
so tall you couldn't see your own feet,
with your neck stuck up, way up, in the sky,
smacking your head on the lights by the street.
And what if you were an alligator
living in a muddy, old bog.
With your biggest fashion statement being,
that if you hold very still, you can look like a log.
Would you like to be a porcupine--
all sharp and pointy and prickled?
You'd never be loved, never be hugged,
and never be tickled.
How about the jellyfish?
Just a floppy, floating bubble of squish.
A ball of goo with nothing better to do
than to sting beach goers who swim with the fish.
What if you were a caterpillar?
Think how much it would cost to buy shoes!
Sneakers, pumps, boots, and slippers!
You'd be singing the too-many-shoes blues.
Given all of that, perhaps, we are better off
just being who we were meant to be.
Besides, longing to be something we're not,
we all know, is just an exercise in futility.
I went to Luigi's, an Italian restaurant here, with my husband and in-laws last night. They have great food, and we had a nice time visiting with family and making memories while there. Montoni's, the pizza parlor featured in the comic strip, "Funky Winkerbean," is said to be based on Luigi's restaurant. I wrote this poem trying to capture the evening.
Sunday at Luigi's
Sunday night finds me
in the spot made famous by Luigi.
Lush, green vineyards on rolling hillsides,
are painted on the walls all around me.
For one small instant in my mind,
I am in Sicily
sitting with family
at a picnic table next to an olive tree.
We are laughing and talking,
sharing a basket of garlic bread and dining on ravioli.
Then, a gust of cold air that is so wintry
invades the restaurant,
bursting through an open door to remind me
that my here and now is not a summer's day in Italy,
but cold Ohio in the middle of January, so blustery.
Luckily, the warmth of good food,
fellowship, and camaraderie
takes my mind from the cold temporarily
and fills my heart with gratitude summarily.
For the seasons will taunt us, (changing constantly)
and we ourselves may flit about here and there,
(with so many sights to see)
but the love of family will be our most steadfast company,
and THAT will be what we treasure the most in our memory.
