It’s hard to tell from the title, but this is the last of the Christmas poems, Christmas – 2005.  We are now current and you no longer will have to read about what my 17 year old grandson did when he was ten.

In 2005, Disney came out with a movie entitled, The Chronicles of Narnia, The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe.  My title for the 2005 Christmas poem was a lame attempt to find humor off of the Disney title.  It would have helped if a few more people had seen the Disney movie.  Maybe, not even that would have helped.  It seemed like a good idea at the time.

It also seemed like we remodeled the whole year.  Our neighbors asked if our contractor had moved in with us.  Almost.  It was maddening.  But, that is probably not too unusual.  My wife’s close friend, Olga, was building a new home and she was furious with her contractor.  She asked her family doctor for something to calm her down.  The doctor said that before he could prescribe the medication, he needed to make sure she didn’t have any suicidal thoughts.  She said, “Suicidal, no, homicidal, yes, I want to kill my contractor!”  The bottom line on our remodeling is that we are tremendously pleased with finished product.

The trip to Ireland was incredible.  If you want to read more about it, see my blog entitled, “Best of Ireland.”


                                         The Chronicles of O’Fivia
                     The Vision, the Trip and the Golf Ball

Golly gee, it’s Christmas time,
A time to write, a time to rhyme.
Santa and his reindeer, way up in the sky,
It’s the best way to travel, with gas prices so high.

Fifteen years in Springfield, and every three we start to pack,
It’s hard to break old habits, then we cut ourselves some slack.
The Army days are over, so remodel and add on a room,
Now Carole has a vision, new bathrooms are coming soon.
It seemed like a good idea, just give the house a new face,
But we hardly picked out the tile, and “someone’s” a basket case.

We sunned ourselves on the Gulf coast visiting Bob and Sue,
Jogged over to see Missy and Terry, then joined the RAJA crew.
But our best trip was in August, we say with a smile,
We were looking for a Leprechaun, all over the Emerald Isle.
While we found no pot of gold, it was a wonderful event,
We came home smiling and exhausted, with all our money spent.

The children are good, you can’t beat that,
No natural disasters, or a serious spat.
Grant’s off to the University of Arizona, and Becky’s at a District school,
Brandon’s put a band together and is trying to be cool.
Missy and Terry keep dodging the storms on Florida’s eastern shore,
With a newly acquired motorcycle, escaping won’t be a chore.
Tyler’s now in high school, and likes to just hang out,
Kristin’s on the dancing team with new routines to tout.
Paul got himself promoted, he’s now a deputy warden,
He commutes to Roanoke, and it ain’t no rose garden.
We saw them at Thanksgiving, togetherness is the answer,
Josh was playing chess, and Jack’s a robot dancer.

We gathered for Mary’s 90th, with Karen, Jeanette and Bill,
We laughed and told great stories, with sobriety and skill.
We’re preparing for another event, another happy day,
For Blanche will soon be 90, she’s only two years away.

A Leadbetter golf school for Jack’s iffy game,
Why he didn’t do it sooner, it really is a shame.
For now, he shot a 79, and his confidence just climbs,
If you’ve seem him in the last six months, he’s told you 14 times.

It’s time to wrap this up, the paper’s gotten curled,
And if this missive arrives real late, it’s cause we’re at Disney World.
But we’re thinking of you all, dear family and friends,
Through these joyous days, till the Holiday ends.
Then a new year begins, and our wish is clear,
We wish you a wonderful and Happy New Year!