Off Balance

There are days it seems I have
Too much upon my plate.
Whether this is good or not
Is up for some debate.

On the plus side, it feels fine
To hustle and keep busy;
But the negative is that
I’m often in a tizzy.

Running ‘round with chores to do
And friends to meet is great.
Sometimes with so many plans
It’s hard to keep them straight.

Other times, though, when I check,
My calendar is bare.
Then I wonder why it is
I’ve so much time to spare.

It’s rare, in life, to balance
Purpose, flow and relaxation,
Unless you’ve left it all behind
And gone on a vacation!

Bob Wire

As a kid, I was told
To beware and not touch
If I ever encountered Bob Wire.
This warning was something
I took quite to heart
So avoiding it was my desire.

It took many years
‘Til I learned that the word
Wasn’t “Bob” but was “barbed” with an “r;”
And that knowledge made sense
For a danger named Bob
Seemed both harmless and rather bizarre.

I saw some today
On the top of a fence
And remembered my enemy Bob.
As I chuckled, I thought
That just being a kid
Is a challenging, difficult job!

On the Floor

I witnessed on the subway
What I’ve never seen before –
A woman tumbled from her seat
Onto the dirty floor.

It seemed that she was sleeping
And, as we all sat and stared,
We wondered who would intervene,
But not one person dared…

Until a brave soul leaned on down
And shook the sleeper’s arm.
She boldly shouted, “Get on up!”
A human-train alarm.

The sleeping lady gave a moan
And uttered, “I’m all right.”
Perhaps she thought she was at home
And tucked in for the night.

The kindly soul persisted,
Saying, “Get back in your seat!
You’re stretched out on the filthy floor,
Surrounded by our feet!”

At this, the sleeper’s eyes went wide;
She let go with a curse.
The Good Samaritan backed off,
Afraid of something worse.

The passengers all held their breaths;
The train stopped at the station.
The sleeper slowly rose and made
A seat her destination.

She promptly fell asleep again.
Who knows what wiped her out?
But watching this, I understood
What life is all about:

When people struggle, some will help
But most won’t interfere,
‘Cause sometimes the recipients
Would rather you stay clear.

Making a Case

The iPhone 4 I bought today
Just set me back a buck.
It’s last year’s model, quite passé
And so the deal was struck.

I found out that it needs a case
So it won’t fall and break,
But I was really thrown off-base
When I heard – no mistake –

The purple case I liked (with teal)
Was priced at fifty clams!
What started as a groovy deal
Soon wore the scent of scams.

They say that nothing comes for free
And that is not a lie,
For stores that make no profit
Are in very short supply.

Customer Service

The bill declared, in bright red ink,
“Your payment’s overdue.
We’ll hand it to collectors
If your check’s not coming through.”

Insurance said they’d paid it;
Prior phone calls should’ve ended it.
At last I reached a human
Who, quite shockingly, amended it.

Not only that, he went beyond
And then apologized.
I must admit, such virtue
Left me more than just surprised.

I’ve gotten used to business folk
Where nasty is the norm.
How rare to find a person who
To meanness won’t conform.

Although I hated being charged
For what I didn’t owe,
I learned civility’s not dead
And that’s so nice to know!

Holdout

I let Black Friday come and go.
I didn’t buy a thing.
I guess I’ll never know what joy
Such bargain deals can bring.

I drove past every single mall,
Set foot in not one store;
And so today I own exactly
What I’d owned before.

Perhaps if I were younger
Or were sorely strapped for cash,
I’d join in all that frenzy
And that eight-to-midnight dash.

But as it was, I stayed away,
Though I will not deny
A tinge of envy, ‘cause I still
Have all my gifts to buy!

Kvelling

The Irish have the Book of Kells,
A wise and ancient tome,
But I prefer the hook of kvells,
Much closer to my home.

To kvell, in Yiddish, means to crow,
Most likely rather loud,
About someone who makes you glow
And feel so very proud.

Your kvells could be about a friend,
Deserving of some fame,
But mostly kvelling does extend
To children that you claim.

So now's my opportunity,
With arguments compelling,
To tell you with impunity
Why I've a need for kvelling.

My son is handsome, smart and sweet
And has a lovely wife.
He's everything you'd like to meet,
A beacon in my life.

My daughter has a voice of gold;
She's funny and surprising.
Her strength is something to behold
And so's her memorizing.

They both provide me lots of joy;
As offspring they excel.
To sum it up, I'll just say, "Oy - 
Do I have cause to kvell!"