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Wednesday, October 5, 2011

Wednesday Challenge: birthday music

Kenia, of Imaginary Garden with Real Toads, has posed an interesting challenge for writer-bloggers this week:
"Discover what was number 1 on the charts the day you were born. Listen to the song, (and then) write a poem which will be your own chant."
Well, I checked with This Day In Music and found out the number one song on my birthdate was called Rumors are Flying played by Frankie Carle and his orchestra, with vocal by Marjorie Hughes.
I don't remember either of those people (I was very young) but I certainly remember Frankie Carle's most famous composition, Sunrise Serenade, which, for years, was a hit for one of my lifelong favorite musicians, Glenn Miller(The two links in this paragraph will give you Sunrise Serenade played by the composer and by the unforgettable Glenn Miller.)

The following poem might not be "my own chant" but it sure is my own work! It is simple Kay-doggerel without any particular rhyme or rhythm, and although I misappropriated the title from the Frankie Carle song, my poem is not based on either the music or the lyrics.




RUMORS WERE FLYING

It’s ridiculous, I know, but my mother told me so.
(They were married on the seventh day of March.)
When I was born, the tongues began, wagging to and fro,
In all old biddies (those so full of starch).
My birthday was December first, although it didn’t snow,
(And my parents were engaged before the war)
But, because nine months had not quite passed
The silly old biddies asked and asked
The kinds of questions biddies just adore.
“It’s not nine months, so what do you think?”
While their silly old faces turned bright pink,
(A color then not right for babywear.)
Well, Mom and Dad were very glad
He lived to come back home from “over there.”
So being happy instead of grumps
Was what they had in mind with their firstborn—
They’d counted weeks instead of months
From wedding night until that "Kayful" morn.






12 comments:

Joyful said...

Oh so well done. I can hear the old biddies now. It sounds like your parents knew how to deal with them and what was more important.

Nanka said...

A delightful poem for the prompt and very inventive too!!

Gattina said...

Bravo ! what a nice poeme !
What worries they had in the past, today the baby comes to the wedding of the parents, lol !

Kerry O'Connor said...

Thank heavens those days of awful biddies are over! This poem is a wonderful celebration of love and life. Marvellous share. Thank you.

KaHolly said...

Brilliant!!

Cezar and Léia said...

Lovely poem dear Kay, thanks for this beautiful post full of good lights!A moment of inspiration !
Léia

Martha Z said...

Love your poem. Times have changed, few people pay any attention today.
Checked the site but, alas, I'm a bit too old for my birth date to show up on the site. I missed being a baby boomer by several months.

My Mind's Eye said...

Now that is a song I'm not familiar with but I love big band music. Old biddies have nothing better to do than wag their tongues.
Hugs Madi and Mom

Ebie said...

Hahaha, I love it Kay, very well written.

Not familiar with the song, but no counting months for me.

You are so "Kayful" of humor.

Ann, Chen Jie Xue 陈洁雪 said...

my war parents didn't have a wedding, or a wedding dress.

Ain't nobody's business but my business.

gautami tripathy said...

Who cares about the biddies?!

Wonderful depicted...

jumpstart

Lillian Susan Thomas said...

word choice, repetition of certain phrases like "the old biddies," a hint of rhythm and rhyme, this could easily be a song lyric itself. It's a fun read, answers the challenge well.