BIRTHDAY LIMERICKS

KNIGHT

A sword made of steel in the hand

To fight back the demons of man

Do all that you must, so your deeds never rust

Protecting our castles of sand.

To a friend who had just lost his brother to suicide

SPINNING

When everything 'round you is spinning

And no one here seems to be winning

Hold those who are close, who know you the most

They were with you e'er in the beginning

To a friend who has had a lot of changes in his life.

TOO COOL FOR CAT

A cat is a cat 'cause he can

He mustn't mingle in matters of man

So when he lazies about, just grooming his snout

He's preparing the pips of his plan

FLYING SAUCER

Look up in the starry sky black

A bright blip appears from a crack!

It's an alien ship? Or a drug-induced trip?

No, a frizbee too late it goes THWACK!

For a friend who plays ultimate.

MEMORY LOSS

If only my head allowed me

To remember a thing past day three

I'd never forget, those fears that I've let

Fly away like a bird that is free.

For my cousin who has had 8 brain surgeries due to hydrocephalus, and has forgot things after every surgery. I admire him for his strong outlook on life.

OLDER

There once was a boy who grew older

But ne'er wisdom gained like Ol' Gultar

He sung like an elf, had 80 games on his shelf.

And rolled natural ones with his smolder.

This limerick was for me. It represented many elements when I was younger of playing a role-playing game my older brother created called Elf.

LOOFAH

LOOFAH

In the shower in the buff

I have my own loofah fluff

Free of an unsightly sponge

Always ripe with gunk and grunge.

Need no store-bought one for foam,

I carry mine where'er I roam.

Only matched by manly studs

I have no problem making suds

Bars or bottles full of soap

It don't matter, I still cope

Lacking loofahs women get

Sudding up from where I sweat

Every fiber of my bein'

Helps me foam and gets me clean

Never having troubles when

Creating foamy bubbled-skin

From ancient old Cro-magnon Man

Descent from their great-grandson's clan

I received these loofah genes

Strands of keratin proteins

Sudding up my shampoo's squirt

With my furry Sasquatch shirt

Used when I need foam in showers

Beast Man's Castle-Gray-Skull-Powers.

For when loofahs you should reach

Think of this unshaved man-peach

Fuzzy covered toe to chest

In a carpet, Nature's Best

Saving bathing soapy waste

Without using poofy lace

Hair will make me lead this pack

Growing loofahs on my back.

TIME'S TEACHERS

TIME'S TEACHERS

(Poem by G. Grant Smith, Revised by Jayson P. Smith)

Joy at times can fade like dusk of day,

And sorrow like a burning ball will dawn.

Giving light to all we hate and fear

Face these to rise return to laugh and cheer

As with time, joy's sun which once was gone

Returns, our darkest sorrows scare away!

We chase tomorrow, forget today,

Yet today, it's treasure is all we own.

A gift forgotten, alas forlorn

A pearled prize if lost to mourn

We own no tomorrows writ in stone

Today forgets us soon, e'er washed away

Moments are fleeting, blown like the breeze

But in each breath is life’s true lasting gift.

Pictures taken swirling in the soul

Each vision scrawled upon a neural scroll

For life’s gift is in each breath adrift

Though fleeting are the moments through the trees.

The past is gone, future sets to dream,

Yet dreams of future times will fade to gray.

For only now, in our time between

Is set the act of our important scene

Age shall dim our dreams which cannot stay

For past once stout shall sleep in slumbered scheme.

Sorrows though deep teach what joy forgets,

And joy reminds us what sorrows shall lose.

Give ear to these Teachers, hark and learn

Value their balance to them never spurn

For that which was lost, joy shall suffuse,

Sorrows shall flee when we turn from regrets.

My brother Grant sent me this poem for my birthday. He said he had a concept for a chiasmus poem, but struggled to get his words out. Ultimately, he turned to A.I. for help. I loved the concept of these dual teachers in each stanza. Originally, each stanza had only 4 lines and had no rhyme. I am a sucker for rhyme. I added the middle lines of each of the stanzas, made some rearranging, and made it rhyme. It now has internal chiasmus in each stanza and structural chiasmus using each stanza. I also made it have a 9-10 rhythm between each line to give a nice cadence. Enjoy!