I bought strawberries
from a farm stand
bright red ripe fruit
that first bite
brought back memories
of my childhood
picking wild strawberries
one for the basket
two for me
sweet taste of summer
I was a hunter gatherer
foraging for food
in the warm afternoon sun
dirt under my fingernails
leaves in my hair
red stains on my shirt
I was a wild child
wild strawberries
wild summer days
wild memories
Serves: You and those you love
Ingredients: dreams, passion, plans, enthusiasm, courage, conviction, self belief
start with a dream
a really big bold dream
stir in a heap of passion to convert your dream into a well defined goal
next make the plans to forge the path towards your goal
stay enthusiastic and work diligently towards your goal
do not wander off the path when the going gets tough
if things do not work out
hit the reset button with courage and conviction
above all maintain your self belief
once achieved
serve with pride
about thirty years ago
I answered the phone at home
a woman introduced herself
she asked me to confirm my name
I did so without hesitation
then she dropped a bombshell
I am your daughter
there was a long silence
I asked her if this was a joke
I am deadly serious she replied
my mother told me your name
and the nightclub where you met her
I have been searching for you for months
I would like to meet you in person
get to know you as my father
I had no recollection of meeting her mother
but I had been to that nightclub in my younger days
I asked for more details
my mother said it was a one night stand
she never saw you again
she made no attempt to find you
decided to bring me up by herself
keeping your name a secret
until her deathbed a few months ago
my mind was racing
could I possibly be her father
did I have a one night stand long ago
with her now departed mother
that I have since forgotten about
I broke out into a cold sweat
How could I ever explain this to my family
how will my wife react to this news
will this woman look like my kids all
will they bond with their half sister
when can we meet she asked excitedly
I was hesitant and tried to buy some more time
tell me more about yourself I asked
she said she lived alone
worked as a nurse in ICU and liked to go hiking
I asked her age
then with some quick mental arithmetic
I broke the news to her
I am sorry I could not possibly be your father
because I am only eleven years older than you
there was a long silence
she said sorry and hung up crying
I wonder if she ever found her real father
1941- THE MOVIE
Moon Over Miami is a musical film directed byWalter Lang, with Betty Grable and Don Ameche in leading roles and co-starring Robert Cummings, Carole Landis, Jack Haley and Charlotte Greenwood. It was adapted from the play by Stephen Powys.
Circa 2009- THE MEAL
At the end of night out on the town in Maryland with a bunch of friends, somebody suggested we go to Denny’s. I am not sure if it was a late dinner or a 3am breakfast but one thing stood out on the menu- Moons over my Hammy – Ham and scrambled egg sandwich with Swiss & American cheeses on grilled artisan bread. Served with hash browns. We all ordered this dish. The most memorable thing was when one of our group fell asleep at the table with her head resting on her plate of moons over my hammy
2023- CINCO DE MAYO
A gathering of friends at the Miami Yacht Club listening to live music and celebrating Cinco de Mayo. Suddenly the moon appeared on the Miami skyline and everybody rushed to take photographs. This scene brought back memories of other moons over Miami
Moving home is always stressful
So many things to do and the list keeps growing
Time seems to go faster as the moving date approaches
Its hard to look forward to packing all those boxes
Just the thought of it fills me with dread
I imagine a condemned man feels the same way about his approaching last meal
There is however some comfort in the inevitability of moving
The boxes will all get filled even if it takes all night
Stuff will somehow get moved on the day
Friends will show up unannounced to help
New neighbors will greet you with gifts of food
You will wake up the day after moving behind a wall of boxes
You will feel overwhelmed at the amount of stuff you have collected
You will vow to declutter and get rid of all your surplus things
Then you will stuff them all in drawers and closets to be hidden until your next move
Moving can also involve unplanned moments of pure joy
While tediously sifting through the contents of a drawer to be packed
I stumbled upon the watch that my mother bought for me many years ago
As I held the watch I could hear her soothing voice
I saw that beautiful loving smile on her face when she gifted it to me
The watch started ticking in the palm of my hand
Reminding me that her love is still alive and ticking inside my heart
Time slowed down when I held that watch
A little boy was happily playing in the back yard of a small house
His grandfather was sitting on the porch watching over him
The boy pointed to a small gravestone
Hey grandpa please tell me again the story about this grave
The boy listened intensely as he sat on the lap of his grandfather
Well a very long time ago when I was a little boy like you
Aliens made secret visits to the planet earth
They wanted to create new lands for themselves and enslave mankind
To avoid a full scale conflict they devised a way to control everybody
The aliens were able to disguise themselves as humans
They took jobs in companies developing mobile phones
The aliens used their advanced technology to bring us smartphones
The aliens then left earth and waited for the smartphones to take over
Within a decade almost every human had a smartphone
The phones made life much easier for everybody
With a few clicks you could get directions order food or a hail taxi
People stoped talking to each other
Instead they sent messages via their cellphones
The aliens plan was working and they were watching from a distance
Hoping that humans would soon become robots controlled by smartphones
Then the aliens would make a peaceful invasion on earth
Nobody would notice because they would be too busy looking at their phones
But somebody figured out what was going on
Your grandma destroyed her cellphone and then she destroyed mine
She buried them in that grave back there
I almost killed myself trying to replace my broken phone
As I lay in that wrecked car I suddenly realized what was happening to everybody
Your grandma and I started a movement to free humans from cellphone control
We went on lecture tours and organized seminars
People followed us and started talking again
The art of letter writing became popular
Governments passed strict laws controlling the use of artificial intelligence
Social media companies lost all their clients and went bankrupt
Smartphones were replaced by dumb phones
Humans regained control over their lives
The aliens gave up and looked for other planets to conquer
Laura came to the door and asked who wants home made ice cream
I do yelled the boy as Dave carried him inside
Dave tried to open the washing machine
But the door was locked mid cycle
He hissed at Laura who instinctively backed away
He went out to the garage
Returning with a large sledgehammer
Smashing the glass door to retrieve his phone
Soapy water spilled onto the kitchen floor
He tried to turn it on but the broken screen would not light up
He hurled it against the wall in rage
Laura cowered in the corner
Dave turned to her and said this is your last chance now
Either you with me to buy us both new phones or we are done
Laura was too afraid to speak
She slowly shook her head and waited in fear
Dave walked out and slammed the front door
He drove off fast like a maniac
Knocking over the mailbox in a cloud of dust
After a lifetime of relying on the GPS navigation in his phone
He could not remember how to get to phone store
He tried typing ATT into the car navigation system
But it kept flashing error messages
He desperately tried to reprogram the directions
The car left the road and glanced off a tree
Speeding into a ditch which flipped the vehicle skyward into a rolling spin
He flinched when the car landed upside down in a field
Laura was cleaning up the mess in the kitchen
She picked up his smashed wet phone and held it lovingly
Recalling all the fun times they had captured with it
She put it in a bag with her own wrecked phone
Wrapping a bright red ribbon around the bag
She dug a hole in back yard and gently placed the bag at the bottom
Carefully covering it with dirt while reciting a burial prayer
You two brought Dave and I together briefly and you will both lay here eternally
Laura did not sleep well that night
Dave snored loudly after drinking too much wine
She tossed and turned until somehow she dozed off
She woke up to see Dave beside her looking at his phone
It was before dawn and the bright screen lit up his face
Hey look at this dancing cat on Facebook he beamed
Do you like my new avatar Laura
You should see all the comments about us on FaceBook
Jenny even asked if the makeup sex was good
Laura ducked back under the covers
Hoping he would stop talking about his phone
Eventually he announced he was taking a shower
He left his phone at the side of the bed
She seized the opportunity to move it
When he came out of the shower he searched for it
Laura told him she had hidden it
So they could have phone free time together
She held him close and whispered
I feel like we are each married to our phones
And having an affair which our phones condone
We even met through a dating Ap
Its like our phones planned the whole thing
Lets leave them forever so we can focus on our relationship
Dave listened patiently then said to her
OK this has gone on long enough
Tell me where you hid my phone please
She led him to the laundry room
The washing machine was in mid cycle
His phone was under water clattering against the drum
Dave went ballistic
Laura opened the door
Before she could decide what to say
Dave flung his arms around her begging for forgiveness
It felt so good to be held by him again
He asked her if he could move back in
She did not say yes or no
Dave never waited for her answer
He just assumed she would agree
He asked why she had not answered his calls earlier today
Laura had to think fast on her feet
Now was not the time to tell him everything
She said her phone was in her jeans and got washed by mistake
No worries said Dave we can get you a new one tomorrow
Do you want to go out to Dinner he asked
As her pulled up their list of favorite restaurants on his phone
Laura felt like Dave really wanted to take his phone out to dinner
She said lets eat at home instead
With a few taps on the screen he ordered Thai food
Oh look Doordash just picked it up
Dave was glued to his phone
The App says the driver will be here in 7 minutes
Laura felt ignored and neglected
She opened a bottle of wine and poured two glasses
Dave went to the door to meet the delivery guy
He took pictures of their food
Posted them on facebook
He never commented on the food itself
He just looked at his phone while eating
He drank the wine without thanking her for it
Laura thought the food was cold and bland
Dave never bothered to ask her if she liked the meal
She was bored and frustrated while she ate
She refilled their glasses
Dave gulped his down while browsing FaceBook
She wanted to lure him off his phone
After dinner she snuggled up to him
Lets have some intimacy time she whispered
That got his attention fast
But Dave insisted on taking more selfies
Both before and after sex
Laura looked out of the window
Wishing Dave would come back
Hoping to see his smiling face again
She checked her phone for the umpteenth time
No calls or texts from him
She looked back to count her texts to Dave
He had not answered her last three
She started to write another
Begging him to come back
Her finger hesitated over the send button
With tears dripping onto the screen
She deleted the text
Then deleted everything from him
Including every photograph of him
All their FaceBook posts were wiped out
She deleted all their joint social media Apps
He was being digitally expunged
She felt no regrets because it was time to move on
Suddenly her phone rang
It was Dave calling but she did not want to answer
She let it ring out to voicemail but he called again
She picked up the phone and smashed it on the floor
The screen shattered but it kept ringing
She was desperate to silence the noisy virtual ghost
It went in the washing machine
On a long hot heavy soil cycle
She could hear it still ringing with the door closed
As the water hit the phone it finally went silent
She sat on the floor watching the full machine cycle
The phone clattered as the drum tumbled
She fished it out after the spin cycle stopped
Her phone was destroyed beyond repair
Just like her relationship with Dave
Then the doorbell rang
Dave was at the door
Cheeky Monkey Poetry 