In my last post, Utensils Vs U-Turns, I used a quote from one of my all-time favorite poets, and suggested that I could, perhaps, have a bit of poetry in me. The truth is, I have always enjoyed, for as long as I can remember, writing poems and making up new, original verses for popular children’s songs. My poetry is the “Old Mother Hubbard, Went to the cupboard” brand of verse – I am drawn to reliable meter and perfect (or at least near perfect) rhyme. In an effort to share my gift of poetry with you (and, also, to get a quick blog post in before I head out of town for a week in the “greater” Big Apple area, visiting a dear, old friend), I have composed an “on-the-edge-of-epic” poem about my car, Louie. Get a glass of wine, light a cigar, and sit back and relax. You are about to be courted by some cultivated verse.
Louie the Shark
I bought an older Hyundai,
A sweet, reliable guy.
He’s the greatest transport buddy.
If I lost him I would cry.
There is one crazy thing, though,
he thinks he is a shark.
I know because he told me,
one night when it was dark.
At first I thought him loony.
He’s just a common ride
who’d never seen the ocean,
and not once rode the tide.
But as I looked much closer,
I was surprised to find
a cute gray fin upon his back,
a baby sharkish kind.
He had a battle scuffle
etched on his auto nose.
I’ve seen a real ocean shark
sporting one of those.
And so, in part, for his sake,
I headed to the shore,
all the way to Virginia Beach.
six hundred miles and more.
My plan was for his welfare.
I hoped that he might find
a day spent near the ocean
would soothe his shark-like mind.
He couldn’t hang out on the beach,
The lifeguards wouldn’t let him.
An access road with ocean views
Was the closest I could get him.
But, Oh, he was so happy,
his horn beeped Ode to Joy.
He didn’t want to pull away,
he shouted out, “Ahoy!”
I witnessed this with merry mirth,
my gray car’s alter ego.
And now I could believe him,
my auto shark amigo.
I’m considering a vanity plate
(if they didn’t cost so much),
‘cause what I’d put upon it
would be the sovereign touch.
(“LUI SHRK”)
So someday you might see us,
driving in your town,
me and my harmless, land-locked shark,
sporting our sharky crown.
I hope that you will greet us
and give my shark a wave,
’cause waves are what he longs for
my car shark, true and brave!
grandma's coffee soup 