The Years of My Life, 1952

A Journey from 1944 to … Now

1952

And so to Texas—off we went.

To Amarillo, where

They had a base—Korean War.

My dad was stationed there.

The Air Force called him back, you see.

Dad’s uniform was back.

And Avondale—my newest school.

(I loved the morning snack.)

And Mrs. Fleming—second grade.

She was a little tough.

But for this Oklahoma kid—

It wasn’t all that rough.

I learned to use the monkey bars—

And other matters key.

I made some friends, but all their names

Have flown away from me.

It was the year that I’d turn 8,

And Eisenhower won

The presidency in the fall.

But all I knew was fun.

My dad loved Ike (that world war)—

In France, they once had met.

And Dad remained a life-long fan—

So loyal, oh you bet!

But childhood was my dwelling place—

I knew no other world.

And Life itself, an endless road

Before me still unfurled.

The Years of My Life, 1951

A Journey from 1944 to … Now

1951.

What was I like in ’51?

At seven, just a pile of fun?

I played at cowboys—had a gun.*

I didn’t know we soon would go

To Texas (south of us, you know?)—

Korean War. (Oh, bloody show.)

I was in second grade that year—

And it had grown so very clear

That I had many things to fear.

Among them? I was stuttering.

(My little bird tongue, fluttering.)

So soon I took to muttering.

And there were Big Kids here and there—

I wasn’t one—that isn’t fair!

They made me cry—they didn’t care.

And I Love Lucy—on TV.

And UNIVAC (a mystery).

A menace (Dennis)—new to me.

And I was playing lots of games—

Like Authors (I was learning names).

And baseball—yes, my pitches—flames!**

It was an odd—a different year.
I'd learned of love—and now of fear.
And both, at times, were very near.

* cap gun

** in my imagination

The Years of My Life, 1950

A Journey from 1944 to … Now

1950.

First grade! I started in the fall—

Soon knew my freedom now had passed—

I’d thought it would forever last—

But no: It wasn't long at all.

I kind of liked it, I confess—

I made some friends and soon fit in.

Oh, not a bad way to begin—

And best of all, of course … recess!

And it was 1950, Yo!

The year that I would be age six—

Would learn those super first-grade tricks.

One problem: Not a lot of dough.

Ten cents a week—that’s what I “earned”

By staying quiet and alive—

On such a fund I could not thrive—

And this I very quickly learned.

But soon I’d learned the school routine—

I’d learned to live on just a dime—

In school so SLOW was Father Time—

Much better was the TV screen!

The Years of My Life, 1949

A Journey from 1944 to … Now

1949.

My no-school years have ended, and

It’s kindergarten time at last.

I learn that I must raise my hand,

That I can’t run so very fast.

It’s Mrs. Dugan teaching me—

She’s just a couple blocks away.

I walk there, yes, so fearlessly—

I walk there every school day.*

The Forties now will breathe their last—

The Fifties wait impatiently.

But I’m still having such a blast—

The world, of course, all made for me.

My birthday comes. A football year.

A jersey bearing number five.

I dress up in that suit (so weird)

With gratitude I am alive.

When 1949 appears—

A comet flares across the sky—

And “Mule Train” is a hit—and fears

Just never really catch my eye.

I’ve many mem’ries from that time—

A carefree time—a time of play.

And as I think of it, well, I’m

Aware it’s not the same today.

*Except when I stop in Kiwanis Park to play on the swings, and my mother has to come get me.

The Years of My Life, 1948

A Journey from 1944 to … Now

1948.

It’s 1948—and I

Am now an awesome four!

A little brother comes along—

I’m hoping there’s no more.

We’re living now on Broadway—just

A block from Grandpa’s place.

And feeling very much at home—

In Enid, now our base.

Joe Bruce—a next door neighbor boy

Is friends with us right now.

We end up playing much with him—

What time and folks allow.

This is the last year I will have

Before those school days come—

Then things will never be the same—

I’ll learn to read and sum.

And Truman’s still the president—

The first I can recall.

And we don’t have a TV set—

So, outside, one and all!

Poor Gandhi then is murdered—and

James Taylor (singer) born.

And Terry Pratchett came, as well.

And Porsche—hit the horn!

The Years of My Life, 1947

A Journey from 1944 to … Now

1947.

November came—and I was three.

Some things were making sense to me—

Like meals and parents, dogs and birds,

Like grandparents—and lots of words.

My brother now was off in school—

And Mom was mine! (Kinda cool.)

We moved to Norman so my dad

Could finish grad school—was I sad?

I can’t recall. But grad school done,

We moved right back—more Enid fun!

My early mem’ries are from here—

“My Shadow”—even now I hear

My grandma’s voice—and as she read

Those words and lines went in my head.*

In Roswell, were there UFOs?

And shorts and jeans—my favorite clothes.

The Polaroid arrived that year—

And Yeager flew with little fear.

Kon-Tiki sailed. The color line

In baseball fell—and that was fine.

Not far from us—tornadoes killed

A hundred seven.** Voices stilled.

And Anne Frank’s Diary appeared—

And Road to Rio (funny, weird).

And Rodham (Hillary) was born—

The woman whom so many scorn.

And Elton John—and Letterman—

And Schwartzenegger—and OJ.

All came that year that I was three—

When none of that affected me.

I ran around—and every day

Was just some time when I could play.

*Robert Louis Stevenson’s poem, which I later memorized and recited for our own grandsons (link to poem)

** Woodward, Okla.

The Years of My Life, 1946

A Journey from 1944 to … Now

1946

And so by 1946

I surely knew some baby tricks.

That was the year that I turned two—

And two-year-olds know what to do:

To get their milk they sadly cry—

And weaning brings a baby’s sigh.

My older brother now was five—

To kindergarten (where he’d thrive)!

All the King’s Men appeared that year—

Hiroshima and Zorba. Clear

That readers really liked to read

The books that kept them up to speed.

The UN—only recently

Created and they sought to be

The group to guarantee the peace—

Perhaps all wars would one day cease?

Bikinis were the latest thing—

And guys were happy as a king

Who just declared such suits must be—

Then, drooling, watched all he could see.

And Tupperware arrived to seal

That only partly finished meal.

And Cannes began (the films, I mean),

And B. B. King then made the scene.

But I, recall, was only two—

And none of this was getting through.

I wanted Mom and Dad—that’s all.

And all I had to do was call!

The Years of My Life, 1945

A Journey from 1944 to … Now

1945

My second year! In ’45.

(I didn’t know I was alive.)

My dad came home—survived the war.

(Who is that man there in the door?)

And FDR—in April—died.

And while the nation grieved and cried,

Came Harry Truman to the plate—

The atom bombs—a big debate.

And Orwell wrote of pigs (in Farm)*:

He felt the worry—saw the harm.

The Paleface was a movie hit—

And Spellbound was so close to it.

And Goldie Hawn was born that year—

And Winkler, Midler (both were dear).

And TV sets—still fairly rare.

But changes—huge ones—in the air.

And “Sentimental Journey” ruled—

And “If I Loved You”? Lovers drooled.

In Bergen-Belsen, Anne Frank died.

Her diary would be a guide

For all who wish with all their parts

That we’d behave with human hearts.

*I know it's Animal Farm; gotta keep the rhythm, though!

The Years of My Life, 1944

A Journey from 1944 to … Now

1944

In 1944 my tale

Began in the Southwest.

In Enid, Oklahoma, which

I soon believed the best.

My father was away at war—

We lived at Grandpa’s place,

Upstairs in our apartment, which

Was really no disgrace.

My older brother, Dickie, was

Three years my senior then—

And my arrival changed his life—

’Twas not what it had been!

Glenn Miller disappeared that year;

Diana Ross was born.

George Lucas—born that year as well.

And Jerry Springer (scorn!).

And FDR the president—

Bing Crosby on the charts,

Where Harry James and others played

The music for our hearts.

Strange Fruit—a book so popular—

Forever Amber, too.

And one about a Brooklyn tree?

It ruled for months—a few.

But back in Enid you could hear

A baby’s mournful cry.

His life had started—on his way!

That baby? He was I!

The Years of My Life

A Journey from 1944 to … Now

And now—another journey—not

Aboard a creaking crazy ship.

Instead, we’ll see what Time has wrought

Throughout my life—a different trip.

Yes, this one counts on memory—

And we will travel, year by year,

Throughout my decades—we will see

What caused me joy—what brought me fear.

My birth was 1944—

And that is where this voyage starts.

We’ll travel forward and explore

The good, the bad, the lives, the hearts

That shaped the person I’ve become.

I’ll blame no one for patent faults.

And take no credit … maybe some …

So we begin this memoir-waltz.

Around the World in the Good Ship DOGGEREL, Finis

A doggerel series about the countries of the world.

End of the Voyage

Our voyage now is over, and

I guess there’s no debate:

The way we took was not the best

To circumnavigate.

Our alphabetical approach

Required some zigs and zags—

Some crazy navigation, Yo,

To sail to all those flags.

I have to say: I learned a lot—

A lot I didn’t know.

Yes, countries I’d not heard about—

You think I’m kinda … slow?

And one-nine-five? So many lands

For me to write about.

Some repetition sailed with me—

Of that you have no doubt!

But here we are—we’re back in port—

No more will this ship roam.

It’s due for scuttling—very soon.

But now—at last!—we’re home!

Around the World in the Good Ship DOGGEREL, 195

A doggerel series about the countries of the world.

Zimbabwe.

A landlocked land in Africa—

But near the eastern coast.

Diversity in wildlife there—

It really has the most.

It once was called Rhodesia when

I was a little lad—

A colony of England—oh,

A rocky past it had!

Declared its independence back

In 1965.

It took a while for it to grow—

It still has yet to thrive.

Its minerals and tourists—that’s

What makes the money flow.

The gold—and all those animals—

Those BIG ones, don’t you know?

Let’s talk about those animals—

In this, our final post,

For animals are really what

Will interest us the most.

Well, how about an elephant?

A hippo—rhino, too.

A lion, cheetah, leopard—Yo,

Is that enough for you?

A hedgehog and a zebra, yes—

Those two are there as well,

And many other wild things that

I have no time to tell.

But let’s sail off from Africa

Aboard our weary ship—

And ruminate a bit about

This far too lengthy trip!

Around the World in the Good Ship DOGGEREL. 194

A doggerel series about the countries of the world.

Zambia.

We’re in the z’s,

And so the “pretty please”

You used to ask

If this infernal task

Were over now?

Well, I’m not sure or how

To let you know

It’s almost time to go.

But Zambia?

I guess that I foresee

A place to stop

Not at the very top

But in the south—

I hear by word of mouth—

And Internet—

Of Africa—you bet!

Victoria Falls

Is there—and how it calls

The visitor—

Or the inquisitor

Who wants to know

Where he can find that show

Of water, light—

He really wants it right.

This landlocked land

With many wonders grand

Oh, cats it’s got—

And some, I know, are shot.

It’s far—I know.

But still I’d like to go.

Yes, there’s a place

I’d love to show my face.

(Though not to lions!)

Around the World in the Good Ship DOGGEREL, 193

A doggerel series about the countries of the world.

Yemen.

Well, we have finally reached the y’s—

We’re near the end (duh—no surprise).

On this sweet ship—how fast time flies!

Well, Yemen’s in the Middle East—

I’m sure you’ve heard of it—at least!

And conflict there has rarely ceased.

And oiling the economy

Is … oil (of course, I knew you’d see!)—

It keeps the wealth there flowing free.

But agriculture has a part—

And industry is in the mart—

Though it’s not had much of a start.

Let’s talk of animals, okay?

It’s got a jackal (wanna play?)—

Hyena, fox, and moose (no way!).

And there are also many snakes—

So … not a place to make mistakes

Between the real ones and the fakes!

Around the World in the Good Ship DOGGEREL, 192

A doggerel series about the countries of the world.

Venezuela.

Oh, “Venezuela”—how I love

The rhythm of that word.

It sort of sings its way to me—

A geographic bird.

High on the continental curve

It sits above them all—

Yes, Ecuador, Columbia—

The large as well as small.

It’s got some mountains—beaches, too.

And islands? Also there.

It has a bit of everything—

That doesn’t seem too fair.

They really have a lot of gold

(Compared, let’s say, to me).

They manufacture things as well—

And oil? A victory.

They’ve got some crocodiles, I’ve read—

And many kinds of snakes.

And, yes, a jaguar—and near him

You mustn’t make mistakes.

A lot of pluses to this place—

From name to oil to gold.

A jaguar’s also kind of … nice,

If I may be so bold.*

*Which I ain’t.

Around the World in the Good Ship DOGGEREL, 191

A doggerel series about the countries of the world.

Vatican City.

Well, this one used to puzzle me

When I was but a kid: You see,

I could not really figure out

What “city” here was all about.

How could a country be a town?

(My little brow then formed a frown.)

But then I learned the history—

The Catholic Church. The Holy See.

(Of course, at first that latter term

Just baffled me, I can confirm.)

But then I learned it was in Rome—

Which long had been its holy home.

And then I read Da Vinci Code—

And felt so smart ’bout what I knowed.*

*Sorry, but knew just doesn’t rhyme here.

Around the World in the Good Ship DOGGEREL, 190

A doggerel series about the countries of the world.

Vanuatu. [vah-noo-AH-too or van-wah-TOO]

Another island nation that

I’ve not sailed to before.

A South Pacific cluster—there

Are eighty islands! More!

Volcanoes brought this world to life—

They bubble on below.

And all the residents, of course,

Hope nothing more will blow.

Well, agriculture is a source

Of economic growth—

And cattle raising also works—

Some people do them both.

And tourists coming to enjoy

The sun, the surf, the sand

Of course bring money there to spend

To supplement the land.

They’ve got some flying foxes and

The seabirds soar galore.

The dugong is my favorite, though—

That name will never bore!

So once again I learned from this

How ignorant I’ve been.

I’d never heard of Vanuatu—

And deep is my chagrin.