After attending our 50th Reunion and seeing so many old high school friends, I thought it would be fun and a tribute to some of our more memorable teachers (Miss Laura Johnston and Miss Annie Terry were two of my favorites) to create a place where we could share our thoughts and experiences about life then and now. Thanks to Ronnie Rose and others we have that place in this web site.
Over the years, I have traveled far and seen many things, as we all have. One of the most precious discoveries has been the power of Haiku. These short poems express powerful images and feelings. It is a form of poetry we all can write. I'm sure Miss Johnston would be proud to hear me say that.
I welcome you all to try your hand at writing some and posting them here to share.
I'll start with a recent Haiku that came to me as I planned my trip to our 50th Reunion. I had not been in Alabama for over 42 years and some of the old feelings came flooding back to me.
OLD TIMES NOT FORGOTTEN
Thinking of red clay
I remember the smells
Of Alabama summer
Although Sandra Copeland and I did write the 'Class Poem' at Cloverdale Jr High,which ended with:
Dear Cloverdale we will miss your halls
But out in the somewhere our future calls
So on to tomorrow and out of today
With cherished memories,we are on our way
BTW we are no longer 'on the way'
I don't think I ever mastered the ancient Japanese poetic form of Haiku.
Something like 5-7-5 and repeating.
So I will be surprised if we get participation from our classmates on this......
However if we should say....complete the following:
There once was a man from Nantucket.....
Ronnie,
You may be correct but there maybe one or two in our class.
Here is a new one for our schoolmate Jim Cargile (West Point 61) who won't bet me (USNA 62) on the ARMY-NAVY game. A sad situation therefore a sad Haiku for Jimmy-san,
Cargile's Lament
Hell on the Hudson 61
Navy Blue and Kadet Gray
My spirit gone for the last quarter
Well we can always get a bet out of our friends at Alabama no matter what the record is.
With Saben there now they will be giving points by next season.
Alabama, along with many other universities, and even Air Force and Navy have viable football programs that are competitive at some level. Army has football for internal consumption only so any football players they happen to get will have a team to play on. Army has forsaken the competitive spirit embodied in McArthur's 'On the fields of friendly strife...' which, if I remember correctly was posted on the wall in our gymnasium at Lanier and certainly should be remembered at West Point. '... seeds of victory' are not likely to be sown on barren, non-competitive playing fields.
Jim
Thanks for bringing back that memory of football at Lanier and the quote from McArthur that hung in the gym.I had forgotton about 'the fields of friendly strife'
I have just acquired a signed photo of McArthur and now I am going to incorporate that quote into the framing.
Ronnie
Al, I bet you $5.00 that you can't sucker Neil (neilg@engr.colostate.edu) in on the Army-Navy bet!
Well Mr. Cargile, I'll be looking for that $5.00 from you. Neil and I have a bet on the 2007 Army-Navy game. My faith has been restored in WP spirit. It's not whether you win or lose except in the Army-Navy game.
BEAT ARMY
Neil, do you mean I have a good chance of recovering my $5 if I bet Al Sommers on the Army-Navy game? Barbecued goat for thanksgiving would be a big change!
