KICK THE CAN
When I was young,
How I loved to 'Play the hero',
To be the one
Who set the others free;
But, now it's rough, I'm just 'Another zero',
It's hard enough
To just take care of me...
Yet, memory still retains the sight,
Of 'Standing up' for what was 'Right',
Of 'Taking turns' at waiting for the swing;
The 'Sleeping out' and 'Marshmallow roasts',
The stories we told about 'Terrible ghosts',
Deciding which girl 'I liked the most',
Then, giving that girl 'My ring'...
Of having a friend 'To stay over',
Of finding a 'Four leaf clover',
Folding the paper to make a 'Hat' or a 'Fan';
He found a nickel, the lucky bum,
Sharing the 'Popsicle' or 'Bubble gum',
Ready or not, here I come...
Running to 'Kick the can'...
Of building a 'Fort'
Way up in a tree,
Of painting a sign
For 'Boys only',
Knowing the 'Crawdad'
Was going to pinch your hand;
The afternoo n swimming
Down at the 'Creek',
The 'All day suckers',
And 'Sharing a lick' ,
Wishing 'To heck'
To grow up 'Real quick'...
Lord, I'd love another chance
To 'Kick the can'...
The above poem was published in 1977 in Beacon, a Limited Edition (1,000 copies) rhyming Poetry book with black on white watercolour illustrations. In 1979, I had an Attack-of-conscience which caused me to remove the remaining ~ then selling like hotcakes ~ copies from the Portland, OR marketplaces that I had established...LOL...just prior to ordering a 5,000 book, 2nd Edition printing. If you are one of the original Beacon buyers, your Beacon book is worth ~ at least ~ three times what you paid for it then. I wish that the author was...LOL... Yes, I am the still the original Russ Miles.
While I was 28-years-old, when I published ' KICK THE CAN ', I was a kid when I lived it. Today, at 58 years of age, I am once more a kid ~ living in the year 1959 ~ when I read it. I am still transported back to a simple time when Studabaker speedometers went to 160 mph, problems were few, delights were many, and the world was ripe for my taking.
Roy Rogers was my hero, nobody died in a fist-fight, and Dale Evans was what every bride should be. As with Rusty and Rin-Tin-Tin, good always prevailed over evil, George Washington could Not tell a lie, and Dwight David Eisenhaur had to be honest, or else he couldn't have been elected president. Right?
Both John F. Kennedy and Vice President Nixon were honest too. But, Kennedy was a Catholic and Nixon was a Quaker. Everything came down to black and white. I didn't know what Quakers believed but I'd heard that they didn't go to confession. Most of the mean kids that I knew didn't go to confession either. My mom said that, Confessio n is good for the soul. I wasn't even mean, but I went every chance that I got. There were always other Things that I needed forgiving for.
I thought that I had better ask my school teacher about what Quakers believed. At recess, when when he was headed to the out-house, I stopped him under the 10 commandments he'd posted above the door.
Is it true that Quakers don't go to confession? I asked.
Yes, that's true, Rusty, he replied. Like most Protestants, they don't pray to Mary, either. Here, take this bell and ring it for me in exactly seven minutes. I sure hope that there is some toilet paper out there.
Wow, I thought. No wonder most of these kids are so mean. They don't pray to Mary so she's not praying for them. I decided right then and there that I'd tell people to vote for Kennedy. I wanted our next president to be getting all of the help he could get, with the Russians and all...
For those of you unfortunate grown-ups that have never played Kick the Can, it is a game much like Hide and Seek. The difference is, when you are found, the It person must run back to the coffee can and jump over it saying, Over the can for Allen! If Allan can get to the can and kick it first, then Billy, Diana, and Judy who were caught, are set free to hide again while the It person recovers and returns the coffee can to the same place...LOL... The first person who is caught becomes the It person when all of the hiders are captured. You can still teach Kick the Can to your children and grand kids. They will love you even more for their new, non-video game.
As for me, I hope that this Beacon Verse series of ezine articles will afford me another chance to Kick the Can of worms away from some who are wishing to escape the wayward wigglies.
Russ Miles writes romance books, Poetry, songs, ezine articles, and mystery thriller novels. In 2006, his remaining copies of Beacon and Imperfections are being sold through his personal website ##MilesBooks.com## and via milesBooks@gmail.com
Comments: MilesRuss@gmail.com
Author:: Russ Miles
Keywords:: Beacon,Imperfections,romance books,rhyming verse,kick the can,russ miles,Quakers,hide and seek,Poet
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