Verse by Joyce
Author:
Organizational:
Audience Rating:
Taxonomy upgrade extras:
A Hymn to Our Welcome Home
Author:
Audience Rating:
Publication:
Permission:
 |
A Hymn to Our |
 |
Welcome home, welcome home. |
A Piece of String - You Don't Need to Learn the Blues
Author:
Taxonomy upgrade extras:
A Piece of String
Don't wait till the fields are brown to come and see us again.
You never know what the harvest might bring.
Don't wait to patch the roof till it's pouring down rain.
You don't need to learn the blues to want to sing.
You'll never keep the bitter wind out
With nothing but a corncob and a piece of string.
Don't keep your voices down, make your joy out loud.
You've got a right to make the rafters ring.
And you don't need to learn the blues to want to sing.
Don't wait till the fields are white to come and see us again.
You never know what the winter could bring.
When the wind from that mountain blows, you know we all feel a bit of pain.
But you don't need to learn the blues to want to sing.
You'll never keep the winter wind out
With nothing but a corncob and a piece of string.
Let the neigbors know, sing your joy out loud.
Don't fear to make the rafters ring.
'Cause you don't need to learn the blues to want to sing.
Don't wait till the fields are green to come and see me again.
You never know what the summer may bring.
When you hear that hearse roll along, you know it's too late to call my name.
But you don't need to learn the blues to want to sing.
You'll never keep the summer rain out
With nothing but a corncob and a piece of string.
The only joy that shows is to sing it loud.
You've got to make those rafters ring.
'Cause you don't need to know the blues to want to sing.
Found this, wanted to put it in with my poetry.
Hugs,
Erin
Another Christmas
Author:
Audience Rating:
Publication:
Permission:
Another Christmas
by Joyce Melton
Another year ending,
Another Christmas come and gone.
We learned some sad songs,
And some glad ones, too.
And that's why I'm sending,
To all my friends near and far,
Wishes for a joyful Christmas,
And love for the year that is new.
Another day dawning,
Another song we have learned,
A new world turning,
Its face to the sun.
And now night is yawning,
But dreams are still young.
There's joy even in sadness,
When we know our day is done.
Another year learning,
That Christmas always comes,
We can sing the glad songs,
And some sad ones, too.
And that's why I'm yearning,
That all my friends near and far,
Enjoy a wishful Christmas,
And love in the year that is new.
Ballad of the Sailor Suit
Author:
Audience Rating:
Publication:
Genre:
TG Elements:
Permission:
You know the tune...
Ballad of the Sailor Suit
by Erin Halfelven
Fighting Sailors in the sky,
Too cute to live, too young to die.
In ribbons and bows and high-heeled boots,
Fighting evil in their Sailor Suits.
No boobies yet, on their narrow chests,
They're just girls, they've got no breasts.
A dozen or so in their high-heel boots,
So brave and cute in their Sailor Suits.
Trained to use such powers grand,
With a gesture of a delicate hand,
And a word or two, in a voice so cute,
Silly but sweet, in a Sailor Suit.
Pretty Soldiers in the sky,
They may get cancelled but they can't die
Still in reruns and high heel boots
They'll fight on in their Sailor Suits.
They fought crooks, many and myriad
But they'll have to quit when they have their period,
So far about boys, they don't give a hoot,
And they won't yet stain their Sailor Suits.
Bunny is sweet though she's not too bright,
Still she always wins when she's over her fright,
With a wave and a wink and a voice so cute,
Too silly to live, in a Sailor Suit.
Come join the Sailors of the Sky.
It's not too late if you give it a try,
You know you'll love to feel so cute,
With ribbons and bows on your Sailor Suit.
Put a Sailor Suit over that boy's chest,
It won't matter, that he has no breasts,
He'll learn to love his high heel boots,
And he'll look so sweet in a Sailor Suit.
Pretty boys who'd rather be girls,
And wear long hair done up in curls,
Or a ponytail would look so cute
When you wear it with your Sailor Suit.
Beans and Cornbread
Author:
Audience Rating:
Publication:
Genre:
Permission:
This is a 16-bar blues song. I wrote it mostly as a tribute to my growing up as part of the hillbilly diaspora. Don't take it too seriously. :) I made beans and cornbread yesterday, and it was a meal I had five or six times a week as a kid and into my thirties.
Beans and Cornbread
By Joyce Melton
Refrain 1:
I’d live on beans and cornbread if I could be with you
Oh, I’d live on beans and cornbread if I could be with you
Yes, I’d live on beans and cornbread if I could be with you
And your smile for my Sunday dinner too.
Verse 1:
I’d pluck the stars from the sky if you would be my love
I’ll pluck the stars from the sky if you will be my love
I plucked the stars from the sky so you will be my love
But we know I can’t reach that high above
Verse 2:
I’d build a cottage by the river where we could live as one
I’ll build a cottage by the river where we can live as one
I’ve built a cottage by the river where we can live as one
… And we’ll be together when each day is done
Skat:
Deedle-eedle-oo-pah!
(Instrumental verse)
Verse 3:
I’ll always be yours if you only would be mine
I’ll always be yours if you only will be mine
Yes, I’ll always be yours if you’ll be only mine
And we can own forever, one day at a time.
Refrain 2:
I’d live on beans and cornbread if I could be with you
I’ll live on beans and cornbread if I can be with you
I’ll live on beans and cornbread so I can be with you
And your smile for my Sunday dinner too.
Coda:
Just your smile for my Sunday dinner, too.
Copyright 2023 Joyce Melton
Blue Daisies
Author:
Audience Rating:
Publication:
Permission:
by Joyce Melton
Don't cry my sweet, don't cry my love.
We've paradise on earth and heaven above.
You've stolen my heart--I'm in love with you,
But wouldn't your tears make the daisies blue?
Wouldn't your tears make the daisies blue?
When we were young and you smiled at me
The world turned for love or so I believed
And your eyes were the color of the Northern sea
And neither of us would let the other leave.
Don't cry my sweet, don't cry my love.
We've paradise on earth and heaven above.
You still own my heart--I'm in love with you,
But wouldn't your tears make the daisies blue?
Wouldn't your tears make the daisies blue?
In the summer of love there is no storm,
The winds are gentle and the rain is warm,
Now the winter of our life is near,
Still you know you'll always be my dear.
Please don't cry, and I won't weep, my love.
We've paradise on earth and heaven above.
You could break my heart, 'cause I'm in love with you,
But wouldn't my tears make the daisies blue?
Wouldn't my tears make the daisies blue?
The time will come when one of us must go,
And our hearts will break and our tears will flow,
Like rivers the color of the Northern sea,
I'll cherish you always, if you cherish me.
You may cry for me, I will cry for our love.
We had paradise on earth and heaven above.
You'll always own my heart--I'm still in love with you,
But won't our tears make the daisies blue?
Won't our tears make the daisies blue?
-- for Jeanne
Brain in a Jar
Author:
Audience Rating:
Publication:
Genre:
Permission:
Brain in a Jar
Reality sucks
It’s eternally true
What happened to me
Could happen to you
One evening you’re fine,
You know who you are,
But the dawning light shows
You’re a brain in a jar.
Brain in a jar, brain in a jar,
Reality sucks, you know it’s so true
And the worst of it is, there’s nothing to do
Cause you’re just a brain in a jar.
Your job really sucks
And it sucks to be you
And you’ll finally find out
That it’s certainly true
When they pour you out
It’s not original sin
They just really need
The container you’re in.
Brain in a jar, brain in a jar,
Your job sucks, you know it’s so true
And the worst of it is, there’s nothing to do
Cause you’re just a brain in a jar.
Your lover sucks,
But not in a good way
Romance is a crock
Even if you’re gay
Your intentions were good
Your motives were pure
But the best of the wurst
Is still sausage for sure.
Brain in a jar, brain in a jar
Brain in a jar, brain in a jar…
If this sad truth gets under your skin
You don’t understand the pickles you’re in
Cause you’re just a brain in a jar….
Brain in a jar, brain in a jar
Brain in a jar, brain in a jar...
Every Flower Dies
Author:
Audience Rating:
Publication:
Genre:
Permission:
Sometimes the weight of loss seems unbearble. We all have someone we know we will always miss....
Every Flower Dies
by Joyce Melton
Last night
I saw the moonlight sparkle in your eyes
And my heart finally came to realize
I’ve always known the truth behind the lies
Love is just a bloom that flowers then it dies.
Spring’s hope is in a bee’s buzzing song
Summer suns help guide love along
Harvest colors should make us wise
That winter comes when every flower dies.
Some day I know you will remember me
A touch, a kiss, a sigh of memory
Years and miles and more between us lie
And the bloom of a love that had to die.
With luck we’ll never see again
The pain in each the other’s eyes
A glance of sorrow shared and then
We hide away behind our lies.
Tonight I must plan to sleep alone
Moonlight will not sparkle in my eyes
Yesterday’s seeds were cast and sown
For some tomorrow when every flower dies.
Fairy Tail
Author:
Audience Rating:
Publication:
Genre:
Character Age:
TG Themes:
TG Elements:
Permission:
A prose poem.
Once upon a time, there was a fairy who had a tail.
She went dancing one night. She danced the boogaloo and the twist, she danced the monkey and the hotcha, she danced the fever and the watusi. She danced dances that didn't have any name at all.
She danced with Allen and Walter. She danced with Susie Q and Nan the Esquimo. She danced with a werewolf and a member of the Illinois State Police at the same time. She danced with people she didn't even want to know their names, and no one else did either.
She danced in Club 54 and Club 66. She danced in the Coconut and the Kokomo. She danced on top of the table, on top of the bar and on top of Frankie the Stallion's lap. She danced in places no one had ever heard of, before or since.
She shook her tail till it fell off -- and that's the end of her tale.
FairyTale.gif is borrowed from El Goonish Shive copyright by Dan Shive.
Want to comment but don't want to open an account?
Anyone can log in as Guest Reader -- password topshelf to leave a comment.
Frantic
Author:
Audience Rating:
Publication:
Genre:
Permission:
Frantic
by J.E. Melton
Just a girl and a guy,
And a moon up in the sky,
Call me a romantic
For a love that makes me frantic—
Catch me, I think I’m falling in love.
Just the sun on morning dew,
And I wake with thoughts of you
It’s the feeling in my middle,
You could play me like a fiddle,
Catch me, I think I’m falling in love.
Love is a splendid thing,
Love needs no diamond ring,
I’d rather be chased than chaste
Is it too late to marry in haste?
You caught me and I think I’m in love.
Love!
Just a guy and a girl
And a moon above the world
Don’t love make life frantic
Ain’t it so romantic?
To be falling…falling in love.
…
Love!
Gentle Lady
Author:
Audience Rating:
Publication:
Permission:
With other recent losses, I was moved to repost this from 2004/10/30 .
+++++
I went for a drive near the ocean and a song came to me. Here it is.
Gentle Lady
Gentle lady,
How I love to see your face,
Hear your voice. Just know
You're around the place,
Gentle lady.
I'm in love with you.
I love the things you do,
The way you look at me,
Gentle lady.
Gentle lady,
How I love to hear you sing.
Make the words up as you go,
Make me laugh about something,
Gentle lady.
How I love to see you smile
Being silly all the while,
Loving that you laugh and love with me,
Gentle Lady.
Gentle lady,
When you're near me I can tell.
I don't know much but this I know,
You take my hurt and make it well,
Gentle Lady.
Let us sing a silly song,
We'll stay a while and then be gone,
Together you and me,
Gentle lady.
- Joyce Melton for Jeanne
Coyright 2004
Gone Away
Author:
Taxonomy upgrade extras:
Gone Away
by Joyce Melton
Gone away, gone away,
Over the mountain, behind the hill,
To a lost and lonely day
Across the river, beyond the rill
Gone Away, Gone away.
In the green dawn we will prosper and grow,
Loved and cherished in the soft morning glow,
All the long day through sunlight we share
The burdens we carry, our toil and our care.
Then evening comes and night follows soon,
Gone are the dainties we fancied at noon
We dwindle like candles, light falters and fails,
Our single hope lingers in stories and tales.
Gone away, gone away,
Over the mountain, behind the hill,
To a lost and lonely day
Across the river, beyond the rill
Gone Away, Gone away.
Springtime is golden 'neath flowering trees
Our stories begin with hope in the breeze
Our summer of glories, so bright and so blue
Sweet blossom of love, so soft and so true.
Autumn's tooth bites at the height of our pride
Fruits of our labor have frozen and died
Still, we are able till winter withers all,
Only peace we can hope will follow our fall.
Gone away, gone away,
Over the mountain, behind the hill,
To a lost and lonely day
Across the river, beyond the rill
Gone Away, Gone away.
In the Goblin Hour
Author:
Audience Rating:
Publication:
After midnight when
Our doubt and fear grow
In the Goblin Hour
by Erin Halfelven
In the Goblin Hour
When the tides of life
Are ebbing lower
Do you ever think
Of floating out
On that dark sea?
'Tween dawn and midnight
When the night deepens
Inward eyes open
In darkness peering
Silently screaming
Goblin doubts and fears
Take our breath away.
Our beating hearts need
A living purpose.
Our minds gibber
At our frightened souls
And smiling goblins
Batten on our fear
In the deeper dark
Of the Goblin Hour.
In that forgotten
Moment of dreams made
Nightmarish visions
We see our best selves
As poor substitute
Beings not human
Unreal imitations
With souls too wounded
To keep us alive.
And so we despair
Of yet becoming
That which we would be.
In the Goblin Hour
The seedlings of dawn
Are planted bright hope
Determination
And necessity
A forest of spears
Rosy points gleaming.
We grasp our goals when
We slay our goblins.
Want to comment but don't want to open an account?
Anyone can log in as Guest Reader -- password topshelf to leave a comment.
Jodie Can't Dance
Author:
Audience Rating:
Publication:
Genre:
TG Elements:
Permission:
by Erin Halfelven
The music seems to stagger from chord to chord, discovering a melody almost by accident. The musicians saw at their fiddles and beat their tambourines; the harmonica laughs and the banjo chuckles and the caller starts the chant.
Jodie can't dance,
Jodie can't dance,
He's got buck teeth
And two left feet
The boy don't stand a chance.
A tall boy in sloppy coveralls and a straw hat takes the dance floor. He moves awkwardly, his heavy boots hit the floor in syncopation. The crowd cheers and claps, stomping out the rhythm.
The boy from Possum Holler,
He stutters when he talks,
He's got no social graces,
Can't chew his gum and walk.
Pretty girls make him swaller
And lord he cannot dance
Just stands there making faces
Cause he hasn't got a chance.
An accordion tries a polka then a two step but the boy is off the beat. It's almost painfully funny to watch as the band changes tempo and time and the dancing boy seems barely able to keep moving without falling into someone or tripping himself.
Jodie can't dance
Jodie can't dance
So stomp your feet
To make the beat
And give the boy a chance.
So Jodie went to the city
To get hisself some help
Thought he'd take some lessons
And learn those dance steps.
Horns come in like city traffic and cymbals clash and a saxophone wails.
The doctor said twas a pity
He never knew what hit him
But after an operation
She finally got the rhythm.
The straw hat flies off to the side and long carrot-colored braids fall free. The crowd laughs and cheers. The heavy work boots are kicked aside and a lovely girl wiggles free of the coveralls. She grins at the crowd and in her Daisy Mae cut-off jeans and knotted shirt, she moves quickly and surely with the music.
Jodie can dance!
Jodie can dance!
Get on your feet!
Take up the beat
And everybody dance!
The music celebrates her and everyone joins her on the dance floor. She twirls with the boys and with the girls.
Now Jodie dances ever'day
'Cause the doctor saved her life
And maybe if you're lucky, gents,
She might become your wife.
The ladies don't know what to say
They know she is one of 'em
'Cause ever since her accident
Jodie's looking for some lovin'.
The red-haired dancer ends up with the handsomest man on the dance floor...
Jodie can dance!
Jodie can dance!
Now ain't she sweet?
She can't be beat,
That feller don't stand a chance!
'Cause Jodie --
Can dance!
Want to comment but don't want to open an account?
Anyone can log in as Guest Reader -- password topshelf to leave a comment.
Look Around
Author:
Audience Rating:
Publication:
Permission:
We were walking close together,
And I knew you had something to say,
But we stopped to admire a winter's day,
And I looked around and you were gone,
I looked around and you were gone.
But life we knew, it wouldn't wait.
I know I didn't mean to make you late,
But I looked around and you were gone.
When I looked around you were gone.
Will you wait for me beside the door?
You know I'll always want to hear more
'Cause that's what friends are for.
So if you look around and I'm gone,
Look around again, I'm not far away.
We'll still be walking close together,
Friends now, friends forever,
You always know what I want to say.
For every night there is a dawn,
So if you look around and I'm gone,
Look around again, I'm not far away.
- For Edeyn from her friend, Joyce
Messages to the Aliens
Author:
Audience Rating:
Publication:
Permission:
Is there anybody out there?
Messages to the Aliens
by J. E. Melton
I thought I might be crazy so I wrote myself a letter.
I never mailed it though, I ought to have known better,
Now I’ll never know what it said!
Living alone inside my head sending messages to the aliens,
Messages to the aliens, messages to the aliens.
Is there anybody out there, Is there anyone who cares?
Is there anyone who really knows
How to tell if they’re living or dead?
Living alone inside my head sending messages to the aliens,
Messages to the aliens, messages to the aliens.
She thought I might be crazy so she sent me to the doctor.
I never went near him though, the truth would have rocked her,
I went to the movies instead!
Living alone inside my head sending messages to the aliens,
Messages to the aliens, messages to the aliens.
Is there anybody out there, Is there anyone who cares?
Is there anyone who really knows
Just what the butterfly said?
Living alone inside my head sending messages to the aliens,
Messages to the aliens, messages to the aliens.
They knew that I was crazy, so they locked me up forever
I don’t mind it though, it keeps me out of the weather,
How will I know when I’m dead?
Living alone inside my head sending messages to the aliens,
Messages to the aliens, messages to the aliens.
Is there anybody out there, Is there anyone who cares?
Is there anyone who really knows
How to tell if you’re living or dead?
Living alone inside my head sending messages to the aliens,
Messages to the aliens, messages to the aliens.
Did you ever think you were crazy? Did you send yourself a letter?
If you’ve already mailed it, you ought to have known better,
Aren’t you afraid to know what it said?
Living alone inside your head sending messages to the aliens,
Messages to the aliens, messages to the aliens.
Messages to the aliens, messages to the aliens,
Messages to the aliens...
...messages...
...to the aliens...
Missing
Author:
Audience Rating:
Publication:
Genre:
Character Age:
Permission:
I made bread without oil,
green beans without salt
and ate them with hot tea
on the last cool day before summer.
I had no milk for the tea,
no butter for the bread,
no hunger for the meal.
I used no spoon or fork,
scooping up beans with pieces of bread.
I washed the single dish and two pans
without soap in water hot enough to scald.
I put them away in the cupboard that has no door.
Then I took my lukewarm tea onto the porch
and watched the sun waste an afternoon.
I sat against the wall of the house on my heels
with my skirt covering my barefoot toes,
I didn't use the glider just for myself, alone.
The night came and it had no stars
and the moon was missing like I miss you.
-- Joyce for Jeanne
Missing a Hug
Author:
Audience Rating:
Publication:
Permission:
While crying about my own and Cathy's mom, a funny thing happened. A happy, silly, little song started tripping around in my brain. I couldn't stop it, so I had to write it down. It didn't stop my tears but at least now I'm smiling. :)
Hugs,
Erin
Reposted from June of 2008 for Christmas 2014.
Reposted again, April of 2017.
Missing a Hug
I'm missing a hug.
Have you seen it?
It's about this big.
Have you got it?
It was round and warm
And big enough for two.
I know it's around somewhere --
I wanted to give it to you.
I never have any hugs
'Cause I give them all away
Even though everyone
Gave me a hug today --
I'm fresh out!
Give me a hug and
I'll have one to give to you.
I'll keep it safe and warm
Till you need it back.
I'm missing a hug.
Have you seen it?
It's about this big.
Have you got it?
It was round and warm
And big enough for two.
I know it's around somewhere --
I wanted to give it to you.
I just can't keep a hug
I give them all away
But if I had a hug
I'd give you one today --
You know I would!
Take a hug along
When you're going far away
That way we'll have one
To share when you get back.
I'm missing a hug.
Have you seen it?
It's about this big.
Have you got it?
It was round and warm
And big enough for two.
I know it's around somewhere --
I wanted to give it to you.
Most Days
Author:
Audience Rating:
Publication:
Permission:
Most Days
by Joyce Melton
Most days I can hold my own,
Most days I'm not alone.
Some days I'm sick and tired
Of missing you.
Most nights I can sleep all right,
Most nights when the moon is bright.
Some nights I'm tense and wired
From missing you.
Sunday night is not too bad,
Monday night I might feel glad,
Tuesday, Wednesday nights may pass
Without missing you.
Thursday night I'm not too sure
Friday night the pain is pure
Saturday I just might crash
'Cause of missing you.
Most nights I can sleep all right,
Most nights when the moon is bright,
Some nights I can't sleep at all
'Cause I'm missing you.
Most days I can hold my own,
Most days I'm not alone.
Some days I may slip and fall,
'Cause I'm missing you.
Most nights I can sleep all right,
Most nights when the moon is bright,
Some nights I can't sleep at all
'Cause I'm missing you.
But some nights I can't sleep at all
'Cause I'm missing you.
Mmm, hmm...Missing you...
'Cause I'm missing you...
November Street
Author:
Audience Rating:
Publication:
For Jeanne, who never saw the November when I missed her most.
November Street
by Joyce
From All Hallows peace through Thanksgiving feast
Feel crisp autumn breezes, see bright falling leaves.
The crowds, how they bustle, the trees how they rustle --
For joys unforgotten my lonely heart grieves.
Ripe apples a nickel, two hugs for a tickle,
The street fairs delight and cold nights need a partner.
We play toesies in bed, talk of books we have read --
Memory's image of love, no edge could be sharper.
How sweet in the morning to wake up my darling--
Still snug between covers, with kisses we greet.
God paints every autumn, so it won't be forgotten;
Love, I'll always remember our November Street.
Want to comment but don't want to open an account?
Anyone can log in as Guest Reader -- password topshelf to leave a comment.
Only Just a Glance
Author:
Audience Rating:
Publication:
Genre:
Permission:
Only Just a Glance
by J.E. Melton
Things are seldom what they seem.
Is life nothing but a dream?
Love is only just a glance,
Eyes that meet as if by chance,
Things are seldom what they seem.
Shall a woman do what she can?
Can a man be nothing but a man?
Love is only just a glance,
Hearts follow steps within the dance,
Shall a woman do what she can?
A kiss is nothing but a kiss,
Might lips touch instead of miss?
Love is only just a glance,
Whatever the moment can enhance,
A kiss is nothing but a kiss.
[instrumental]
Things are seldom what they seem.
Why can't we live within this dream?
Love is only just a glance,
There's no such thing as sweet romance,
Things are seldom what they seem.
Tomorrow we'll have to part,
Who needs a broken heart?
Love is only just a glance,
Don't be afraid to take the chance.
Tomorrow we'll have to part.
Love is only just a dream,
Things are seldom
What they seem.
Copyright 2004 by J.E. Melton
Radioactive Blues
Author:
Taxonomy upgrade extras:
I haven't done any writing since Mom got really sick, and me too. But I'm sitting here listening to Tom Petty, Dave Matthews, Hank Williams, Roy Orbison, Johnny Cash and Randy Newman (my iPod is confused, too). Something happened, a song. Imagine this written and performed by one or more of the above guys.
Radioactive Blues
I fell in love like an atomic bomb
But she left me flat as Nagasaki
I wanted to take her home to my Mom
But she changed the keys and tossed my shoes
Now there ain't nothing left of me.
You couldn't find my heart with a Geiger counter
Yes, I'm completely blown apart since I found her
Cause I got them radioactive blues!I'm in love with a plutonium blonde
I'm as flat as the sands of Trinity
When I met my love the atom age dawned
She kicked me out, I got nothing to lose,
Cause there ain't nothing left of me.
You couldn't find her heart with a Geiger counter
Yes, I'm completely blown apart since I found her
Once I got them radioactive blues!Don't fall in love with a nuclear tart
Who'll leave you flat as Hiroshima
She'll blow your soul completely apart
Your atoms just drifting in ones and twos.
Your poor hopes couldn't get dimmer
You won't find your heart with a Geiger counter
If you're completely blown apart once you found her
Cause you got them radioactive blues!
Something Lovely
Author:
Audience Rating:
Publication:
TG Elements:
Permission:
Something Lovely
Something borrowed, something blue,
Something old, something new,
Something lovely happened tonight.
Something bright, something pure,
Something grand, something sure,
Something lovely happened tonight.
The pastor asked, “Do you…”
And the bells rang soft and true,
As the choir sang of love
And all the heavens above
Witnessed something lovely tonight.
I can tell you a miracle happened,
In a sad and lonely world
Amidst the modern swirl
And the state the planet’s in
It takes two to make it spin!
Find a soulmate for you must
Because the future is only just
A present you’ve not unwrappened.
And you both said, “I do…”
In voices soft and true,
And the choir sang of love
As all the heavens above
Witnessed something lovely tonight.
Something borrowed, something blue,
Something old, something new,
Something lovely happened tonight.
Something bright, something pure,
Something grand, something sure,
Something lovely happened tonight.
-- by Joyce for Piper and Amy
Image: By Davidturnswood [CC BY-SA 3.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0)], via Wikimedia Commons
Swaddy Bopp
Author:
Audience Rating:
Publication:
Genre:
TG Themes:
Permission:
by Erin Halfelven
Everybody's playing Swaddy Bopp,
Put your money down and take the bet,
Who will you be when they let...Swaddy Bopp! Swaddy Bopp!
Let the music stop?It's a game the rich and cruel play,
Winners take all, life is just the stake,
Who will be you when they make...Swaddy Bopp! Swaddy Bopp!
Make the music slay?If you're young you can play Swaddy Bopp,
Someone old and rich will pay your debt,
Who will you be when they let...Swaddy Bopp! Swaddy Bopp!
Let the music stop?If you're old you're gonna have to pay
But it can make you young again.
Boy or girl, try an original sin...Swaddy Bopp! Swaddy Bopp!
Let the music play!It's just a game of body swap,
Every morning I wake up someone new,
Who will I be, what will I do...When they make the music stop?
Swaddy Bopp!
The Ballad of Nelly Pine
Author:
Audience Rating:
Publication:
Genre:
Character Age:
TG Themes:
Permission:
'Twas the jolly crew of the Mary Deare in seventeen sixty-nine...
With a fresh wind on the Bristol Sound first sang ...
by Erin Halfelven
That Molly Peake, the captain's daughter, met young Neddy Pine.
Neddy served as the cabin boy of Molly's father, Jake,
Who was the son of sons of sailing men on back to Captain Drake.
And Molly said when she saw young Ned, "Surely, you're naught but a child.
Your skin is as soft as mine and your voice is sweet and mild."
Neddy blushed for he knew 'twas true, he'd not yet turned fifteen,
But he knew his ship from rudder to sprit and ev'ry spar between.
He could reef a sail from a foremast yard, be it so fierce a blow,
That most of the crew of the Mary Deare stayed safely snug below.
He could reckon a position from the clock and the sun
And near Jamaica he'd even occasion to captain a twelve-pound gun.
Molly laughed in delight as he stammered there, cheeks so brightly red.
"My Nan's sick, so I'll ask Da, can you be my maid instead?"
Molly teased the poor boy but her father heard what she said
And Captain Jake Peake let Molly make a maiden out of Ned.
So when they sailed for Baltimore on the rush of the Bristol tide
Twas Nelly Pine as lady’s maid who stood by Molly's side.
The crew of the Mary Deare had a laugh at Ned's expense
And Molly repented of her jest when she saw her new maid wince.
"I'll teach you things about women that none of these tars will ever know."
She whispered, "When this is over and we to our ways go,
You'll have yours back on many a maid, for what you learn
On this voyage will do the man you'll yet become a right good turn."
So Nelly and Molly sailed across the blue seas to Baltimore,
And Nelly learned about women till the Maryland shore.
Yes, Captain Jake gave his blessing to such a cunning plan
For he'd no intention that Nelly should ever again be a man.
"I'll make you a deal, Nelly," said the Captain, "Serve Molly as her maid
Twelve more months, I'll buy you a ship. I promise you'll be paid."
Scarcely above the surf, Jacob Peake sold the Mary Deare,
Settling in with daughter Molly--and her maid, Nelly-for-a-year.
Molly continued Nelly's lessons in all things of womankind,
With Jake as father and master, no better you could find.
But Captain Peake had fallen in love with fair Nelly Pine.
"I'll not be happy," he told himself, "til I know she's truly mine."
As for Nell, her duties now were lighter, her days nigh free of care,
Maiding is less work than sailing, and yards more fraught than hair.
But Nelly found herself both lonesome for the open sea,
And worried about the new person she saw herself come to be.
She liked being warm and safe, at home in Baltimore's civil air
She liked the softer living, though she missed the ocean's dare.
And she loved the soft clothing that as a lady’s maid she wore,
But Nell could be seen, often, standing on the strand of Baltimore.
She watched the ship’s in their lading and tracked each dory and tender,
And the sailors watched our Nelly for they never doubted her gender.
Poor Jake Peake grew jealous, as green as the water in Delaware Bay,
And he promised himself to make Nell his bride, one fine Baltimore day.
The twelvemonth neared its ending, and Nelly was torn in twain.
She loved the sea, but couldn’t deny, ‘twas she that had been changed.
“I’ll never reef or steer again with these hands so soft and womanish,
But if I can’t go to sea, I’ll cast myself in to be eaten by the bottom fish!”
Now Molly had watched the strange she-change of Neddy into Nell.
And her heart rejoiced for love of her friend and she saw as clear as a bell
The path to Nelly’s contentment, the satisfaction of her love of the ocean
Because she hadn’t been blind to her father’s hopes or deaf to his devotion.
“Marry my father,” she told Nell, “then you can have your ship and serve her,
I’m sure that Jake Peake would let his wife become her own ship’s purser.”
And to her father she said, “You know, da, the time has come, tis now or never,
The twelvemonth’s up, beg Nelly for your wife, and sail your ship together.”
So Nelly Pine became Nelly Peake on the strand of Baltimore
And Jacob swore to love and cherish her alone, forevermore.
They bought back the brigantine Mary Deare and sailed for Bristol Sound
With a cargo of tobacco, timber and tar worth many a silver crown.
Nelly served as purser, keeping the books for her ship, and ships,
Her hands would always be soft lady’s hands, as soft as her lips.
Jacob was once again Captain Peake, master of the Mary Deare,
Happy Nelly had the sea she loved and Jacob had his Nelly near.
The Uniquorn
Author:
Audience Rating:
Publication:
Permission:
by Erin Halfelven
(with apologies to Ogden Nash)
The Uniquorn is a singular beast,
There's only one, at most. At least,
If you've met the Uniquorn
As sure as you're born—
And you can tell your mother—
You'll never meet another.
What It's Not
Author:
Audience Rating:
Publication:
Permission:
A song to sing with the sunrise...
What It's Not
by Joyce Melton
It’s not about you. (Pomp, pomp.)
It’s not about you. (Pomp, pomp.)
It's not what you hear. It's not what you fear.
It’s not about you. (Pomp, pomp.)
It’s not what you do. (Pomp, pomp.)
It’s not what you do. (Pomp, pomp.)
It’s not what you do. It’s not about you.
It’s not about you.
It’s not who you are. (Pomp, pomp.)
It’s not who you are. (Pomp, pomp.)
It’s not who you are. It’s not what you do.
It’s not about you. (Pomp, pomp.)
It’s not who you are. (Pomp, pomp.)
You’re not the star. (Pomp, pomp.)
It's not what you hear. It's not what you fear.
It’s not what you do. It’s not about you.
It’s not about me. (Pomp, pomp.)
It’s not about me. (Pomp, pomp.)
Despite what I see, it’s not about me.
It’s not about me. (Pomp, pomp.)
It’s not who I am. (Pomp, pomp.)
It’s not what I’ve done. (Pomp, pomp.)
Despite what I see, it’s not about me.
It’s not about me.
It is what it is. (Pomp, pomp.)
It's just what it is. (Pomp, pomp.)
It’s not who I am,
This thought makes me free.
It’s not what I’ve done,
It’s not about me.
What Mommas Do
Author:
Taxonomy upgrade extras:
This is going into the funeral folder for Saturday.
What Mommas Do
My momma taught me left from right, and right from wrong.
She soothed my hurts and cooked my meals and cleaned my clothes.
She loved me and I never had to wonder why.
Because that's what mommas do.
And Momma tried to fix the world sometimes
And make it safe for kids and dogs and flowers.
She loved me and I never had to wonder why.
Because that's what mommas do.
And whenever the night seems just too dark and lonely and long,
I remember when Momma was there to dry my eyes and wipe my nose.
She loved me and I never had to wonder why.
Because that's what mommas do.
And Momma taught me all of my rhymes.
And showed me that rainbows come from showers.
She loved me and I never had to wonder why.
Because that's what mommas do.