This morning I decided that we should do a family Christmas letter. I figured I'd do it as a poem, just to make things a little more interesting. Here's the result. Enjoy!
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I sit by the
window and watch all the snow
And think of
a time not too distant ago
When my mom
wrote a letter, but also a poem
That gave a
brief update of affairs in the home
And thinking
of this, I had the ambition
To try and
keep up this amusing tradition
Now, I’m not quite as good as my mother
at this
So I hope you’ll forgive me if things
don’t quite rhyme or keep time
Or fall nicely in line.
But here goes, I will try, if you will
not dismiss
The honest attempts of poetic design
To start
with I’ll talk about me, and I pray
You’ll
forgive this brief egotistical bray
But the
truth is that I’ve been doing quite good
In all areas
where my interests have stood
From rock climbing,
(this year I did five thirteen!)
To
philosophy courses and Saint Augustine
Besides
this, I play every week in a band
Lead
electric guitar is the place where I stand
And as far
as career goes, I’m gonna’ be honest
I’m a pretty
good dentist, and now have my own office
This state
of affairs represents a promotion
And I’ve got
to admit, caused elated emotions
In short,
things are good, in fact couldn’t be better
So I think
it is time to move on in this letter
As for
Rachel, who I will always hold dear
It was fun
to look back this decennial year
On all of
the wonderful times that we’ve had
While at the
same time thanking my mom and my dad
For they offered to take all the kids on their own
So that
Rachel and I could spend time all alone
At nighttime
we stayed in a lakeside chateau
And by day
found adventure in North Idaho
I surely got
lucky with her as my wife
To have and
to hold as we’re dancing through life.
Now I’m changing things up a little bit
here
Because as I read this, it sounds to my
ear
A bit too much “Seussian,” and I have
to admit
That it makes me a little bit tired of
it
So I think that I’ll bid the good
doctor goodbye
And maybe give William Shakespere a try
So now we can turn back to Rachel again
Upon a new pastime,
her fine tastes did alight
The
objective, not easy, but worth all the pain
To
experience life from the seat of a bike
She rides
with a passion unmatched by her foes
With the
wind in her hair, her legs turning sore
But ever
upward and onward she goes
Racing at
times fifty miles, or more
In her
career too, she's held high in esteem
And she’s
gotten to work in some prominent venues
Because of her
skill, opportunities gleam
She interprets
her way to Alaska, by cruise
And now on
to Evelyn, the eldest of kin
She’s tall
for her age, with more wit
She lives in
a world of books and of pens
And is
smarter than she will admit
She is also
an artist, and lives with the aim
To work in a
studio when ere’ chance arrives
Art camp even
gave her a chance at acclaim
At least
among other young children her size
As for Addy,
she is second to none
When cuddles
are high in demand
And I can be
sure that she’ll be the one
When I want
to hold somebody’s hand
She’s
learning to read and does well in school
With her
teachers she’s surely a star
Her shortcomings,
few, her faults miniscule
I have no
doubt that she’ll go far
As I write I am feeling myself getting tired
And words are escaping my mind
I can’t keep the structure much more
that’s required
So I’ll switch to limerickian rhyme
So next up
is Jackson, my guy
Who many
mistake for small fry
But put him
in the game
And watch
people exclaim
He’s one to
exemplify
‘Cause Jack
just knows that he’s good
Confidence
runs in his blood
Persistence
and grit
Are the traits
he transmits
Especially
when misunderstood
Basketball
is becoming his sport
Even though
he’s really quite short
His
foot-shuffling trademark
Is the talk
of the ballpark
But it doesn’t
change skill on the court
This limerick stuff gets old fast
I need to rethink my attack
When it comes to good taste
Robert Frost is a case
Who’s rhyming schemes go unsurpassed
My Maren,
little fire child
One day
sweet, the next day wild
But she knows how to win me o’er
With nothing
but a simple smile
In preschool
she has lots of friends
To whom her
pleasantness extends
Adult and
child alike, it’s true
That age,
her loveliness transcends
And finally
little Lindsey dear
Who says
some words, but not too clear
She walks
around the house and then
Lights up
the room with childish cheer
And when a
soft thing she doth spy
A blanket or
pillow standing by
Bends at the
hips and plants her face
Her need to
cuddle gratified
So that’s a wrap, I won’t rewrite
This poem- I take preemptive right
To call the day, and expedite
The process for a copyright.
On second thought, I’ll be polite
Merry Christmas to all
And to all a good night.
