Christmas 2004

Once again it’s time
to mingle wit and rhyme,
And tell it like it is and like it was.
One question that I’ve heard;
Why try to rhyme each word?
My response to that …Well, just because!

Barb tells me It’s no use
To compete with Dr. Suess!
But let me make this one thing very clear!
The doctor’s limitation
Is his wild imagination;
But you’ll find no exaggerations here!

We feel this year gone past,
Has gone past rather fast.
Blurs of faces, places, sights & sounds;
I’ll share some of the news;
Is it bad or good? You choose!
For we’ve circumvented several ups & downs!

Eleven months ago
(It was 35 below)
Barbie’s mom was having vision trouble;
One eye was very red;
There was aching in her head;
So then off to the doctor’s on the double!

A growing cataract
Had pushed the lens off track.
A specialist was needed to appraise her!
The one on call that day
Was an hour’s drive away,
He performed a quick fix on it with his laser!

She took some pills for pain
Then we went home again;
This ordeal’s taken 7 hours in all.
On chicken soup she fed,
Then headed off to bed;
But on the way upstairs she had a fall.

It seemed some harm was done
So Ang called 9-1-1;
We keep her still and did a visual scan;
With scattered hints of urgency
They took her to emergency
By ambulance; I followed in the van.

Admission was refused!
They said she’s merely bruised,
The pain will ease; a few days at the most!
But that was not to be
And we could clearly see
Gladys had been wrongly diagnosed.

It didn’t take that long
To know something was wrong,
Barb took her back insistent on more testing.
Gladys was checked in
So treatment could begin;
Three days since the fall and finally resting!

About ten days went past:
They discovered it at last!
A broken pelvic ring and 4 cracked ribs.
As Gladys started mending,
Updates we were sending,
By e-mail to our friends and Barbie’s sibs.

With Gladys on the mend. . .
Barb and I would spend. . .
Any free time paying her a call;
Teaching, chores and shopping
Meant Barb was always hopping!
Down time added up to “none at all”.

Once the bones had cured
Gladys was transferred.
To the Rehab Centre for a spell.
Re-learning basic skills,
Plus exercise and pills;
Through all of this she held out rather well.

When she was released
She was ‘Glad’ to say the least;
And that time, yes, the pun was intended!
We moved one of the chairs
And brought her bed downstairs
Pretty soon she seemed completely mended.

Both cataracts removed
Her vision’s much improved,
And hearing aids now help her listen more;
The year is winding down
But oddly, we have found
That she, somehow is better than before;

It turns out that this story
Is a long one, but I’m sorry;
But truth be told, were happy to be sharing.
We’ve felt the strength of friends
Whose compassion never ends.
I’m publicly proclaiming “THANKS for CARING!”

Now, on to the rest;
I”ll try my very best. . .
To stick to choosing words precise and clear;
Then when the rhyming’s done
Off to the fridge I’ll run,
For my celebratory, ritualistic beer!

So what has James been doing?
What goal is he pursuing?
He’s in final year at Ottawa U.
If marks are kept on track
Next fall he will go back;
A year of teacher’s college; then he’s through!

They told him to forget it
He was short on studio credit,
But after cramming, things are back on cue.
He worked the summer here,
At Sterling Pools, this year;
Not the greatest pay, but it would do!

The vocal group “Sous-Soul”. . .
Is still under his control,
And singing his arrangements here and there;
And Barb is thinking he. . .
Is perhaps in – L – O – V – E –
With a certain tall “goddess” with golden hair!

Katherine, who has spent
Her first two years at “Trent”.
Chose to take year three in western France.
It was pre-arranged
That student’s get exchanged;
A year in Nantes; a great experience!

Before our daughter went
Her summer days were spent. . .
At Kawartha’s Golf & Country club;
Her job was, in part,
To drive the “beer girl” cart,
Or serve the bar, with booze & golfer grub!

“Most boys in France are hot”
Says Kat, “and shy, they=re not!”
(Talk like that can give me more grey hair)!
She’s happy, that we see;
And her host family. . .
Treats her very well when she goes there.

Barb and I just might
Ourselves, arrange a flight;
And drop in on Kat before school’s done.
Sadly, there is rare time
That we’d consider spare time;
None-the-less, a trip would be such fun!

Angela, who’s next
Has lately been perplexed;
Last year was spent preparing for auditions;
At Sheridan she applied;
Her first choice was denied:
She then had to make some tough decisions.

She picked a second choice
Where theatre, dance and voice. . .
All merged into a course of introduction!
Perhaps the next best thing;
At least she still could sing,
Her road to fame is still “Under Construction!”

Soon, Angie will shine
In a role so very fine.
This February, you might be surprised!
Angie takes a dart. . .
From Cupid, in the heart;
It’s Opera, and in it, Angie dies!

Angie had a role
In the play “Cage aux Folles;”
A very colourful and vibrant show;
With summer work uncertain
She went to Haliburton,
In August; that’s three years in a row!

Clara also went
With costumes, props and tent;
For the “Wolf Project”, by “Murray Schafer.”
This year, with extra care
They avoided wolf and bear;
Reportedly, they all felt much safer!

She has finished school
And I’d say, as a rule. . .
What she misses mostly are her buddies!
This year she’s discerning
Post-Secondary learning;
Likely to involve some music studies!

Clara’s found enjoyment,
With full time employment;
Working in a store called “Joanne’s Place”
Need good food? Don’t panic!
Everything’s organic,
Nothing’s artificial; not a trace!

Her piano skill
Is getting better still;
Barb takes her to Lindsay now for lessons.
Gael, the teacher there,
Warns “You must prepare!”
“Practice long & hard between your sessions!”

All this music stuff,
But still it’s not enough!
Clara’s joined the choir with her dad!
One member says “You know. . .
She”s the bubbliest Alto. . .
“Peterborough Singers” has ever had!”

So far three concerts done;
It’s clear she’s having fun:
Her schedule is almost filled up now;
Then several students come,
And she, just like her mom,
Teaches them the best that she knows how.

In spring, then fall, now winter
Barb’s many students enter;
More than last year maybe, I’m not sure!
Our house has music in it. . .
Some days, every minute:
Free time, when it comes, is just a blur.

But Barbie seems to thrive
And her spirit comes alive. . .
As all these little children come and go;
One theory I’m suggesting. . .
Is that Barb is “empty nesting”;
Since Clara’s hardly ever home, you know.

There were some good reviews
Of concerts, in the news;
The local Symphony, where Barb plays flute.
This group of players know. . .
What makes it a great show;
Barb does it all: she plays well, and she’s cute!

Barbie chose to take. . .
A small orchestral break;
And sing in “MESSIAH” along with me;
The music was brand new. . .
To Clara, who sang too:
Yet, both shows went off stupendously!

Just this past July,
Barbie waved good-bye!
All sisters, near Magog, were to meet;
Despite the chance of “friction”
[5 girls; 6 days; 1 kitchen];
All enjoyed their “summertime retreat.”

In August, with our tent. . .
Barb and I both went. . .
Up to Dunchurch for a little break!
We bought a boat from Helen;
A canoe that she was sellin’. . .
We only tipped it once, there on Quinn Lake.

My school is quite run down;
Some say, “the worst in town”
Soon we’ll move into our new location;
Ongoing renovations;
And moving preparations;
March Break, perhaps, or summer vacation.

You’ve had a chance to hear
Our choir sing this year;
A choral competition heard coast to coast.
To the finals went we;
To sing on CBC:
Nationally, were second best we boast.

As, each year, I proclaim. . .
My life stays much the same;
Full with common things like bills and trash!
All joking now aside,
I find it’s best to hide. . .
During the occasional “hot flash.”

We are now reporting
Some audio recording;
In a studio, all six of us!
If I’m to speak precisely. . .
The songs convey quite nicely. . .
“This is who we are!” It really does!

These are just small hints
Of all the year’s events;
But now it seems I’m running out of time!
I’ll end this endeavour;
But know that I am never. . .
Ever, running out of words that rhyme!

Details clear, I trust;
So now, conclude, I must.
We’ve been blessed; and may God bless you.
Peace and Joy we pray
For all of you today
Merry Christmas and Happy New Year too!