Growing Up

Posted on January 17, 2026 under Poetry with 2 comments

When I was young… and had hair!

 

Are you sick and tired of bad news? Escape for a bit to a simpler time. Nostalgia is a good drug to take!

 

GROWING UP

 

 

When I was young and in my prime,

I was happy to live in the Maritimes,

Building forts and climbing trees,

Saying prayers down on my knees.

 

The summers were endless, bright and clear,

A walk in the forest, spotting a deer,

Feeding chickens, and eating berries,

Life so easy, free and merry.

 

Picking chestnuts off the ground,

Making necklaces with what we found,

Kicking leaves to make them crinkle,

Turning soggy when it sprinkled.

 

On Hallowe’en we wore our masks,

Collecting candy was our task,

Door to door calling “trick or treat”,

Hitting every door, not missing a beat.

 

When the cold winds blew, it was off to the ponds,

Covered in ice, no sign of the fronds,

Skating endlessly from morning till night,

Playing pond hockey, a child’s delight.

 

Santa came in late December,

A special time for a child to remember,

Gifts piled high on the living room floor,

Presents and presents and presents galore.

 

The winter months were cold and bleak,

With ice on the trees, making the branches creak,

We took our sleds to Bishop’s Bowl,

Good for the heart, the lungs and the soul.

 

The arrival of blue jays hearkened the spring,

Perched in the bushes, we could hear them sing,

The end of school not far away,

We would be on vacation any day.

 

The click of the cricket, the croak of the frog,

Eating a sandwich while sitting on a log,

Life was so much simpler then,

For a blond, curly headed boy named Len.