Hello. I suspect this will be a brief post; my current project is taking up my time. Whilst it should conclude soon so I'll be less reliant on Darcy and Cecile, I simply had to take time to share the following with you.
To recap, my boy Brendan enjoys inventing stories that he can act out with his chums. When he joined Ken Furbanks' little drama club he began to write out his little tales to contribute there. This has had the bonus of improving his school work. He still has the amusing habit of using some words that he doesn't fully understand but his spelling and grammar have improved immeasurably.
"Uncle Chris helped neaten it up but it's my idea and my rhymes. He told me about metal force so I used them."
"Metal force? You mean metaphors?"
"Hmm, maybe. I thought about having the flowers leaping about at the party. Springing, you see? I asked Uncle Chris what he thought but he said it was my poem. I should ask myself would it make it better. I then remembered what Mrs Robinson said about writing and how it was easy to overdo things."
To recap, my boy Brendan enjoys inventing stories that he can act out with his chums. When he joined Ken Furbanks' little drama club he began to write out his little tales to contribute there. This has had the bonus of improving his school work. He still has the amusing habit of using some words that he doesn't fully understand but his spelling and grammar have improved immeasurably.
You may recall that Brendan and I had fun recently when I was working on a song for the school. It's clear he has a skill in writing parodies and his invented alternative lyrics for songs result in a lot of laughs. Years ago he came up with a parody of the advertising jingle we wrote for Rodentene toothpaste. Obviously that was not an isolated case.
I'm writing to highlight a poem Brendan had written about springtime. From what he said, he had some inspiration from the lyrical output of my songwriting partner and best friend Chris Snow-Warren, but even so it's typical Brendan.
o 0 O 0 o
The first I saw were snowdrops
But they arrived too soon
They'd got the month wrong yet again
and that burst their balloon.
Their nodding heads showed they were sad -
With nothing they could say,
They'd miss the springtime party bash
As they would rot away.
The golden crocus missed out too -
A different reason why,
They were not like the snowdrops,
Their doom came from the sky.
Sparrows liked their yellowness -
Flew in to fill their beaks.
The purple nearly made it,
just needing two more weeks.
Some flowers made the party -
The tulips and the daffs
and even a few primulas
turned up to have some laughs.
For springtime is a time of hope
where warmth and colour ping.
Let's follow their example
and celebrate the spring!
o 0 O 0 o
"What do you think, Dad?" he said. "Do you get it? The flowers all wanting to go to a party? Only some could make it but even those who couldn't tried to have a good time."
"It's very clever," I said. "You're doing well with your writing. Your grammar is getting better, but more than that."
"Uncle Chris helped neaten it up but it's my idea and my rhymes. He told me about metal force so I used them."
"Metal force? You mean metaphors?"
"Hmm, maybe. I thought about having the flowers leaping about at the party. Springing, you see? I asked Uncle Chris what he thought but he said it was my poem. I should ask myself would it make it better. I then remembered what Mrs Robinson said about writing and how it was easy to overdo things."
Cecile came into the room at that point.
"Oh hi, mum," said Brendan. "You were right. Dad liked my poem. He said it was clever. Beverley needs to know that. I think I'll go and tell her."
We watched him leave. Cecile gave an affected sigh.
"Oh, how will I cope with all these talented people around me?"
We looked at each other. A brief silence. Then an explosion of laughter.
o 0 O 0 o
Brendan's use of words highlighted how he is growing - like his flowers. His springtime, I suppose you could say.
Now that's a metal force.
o 0 O 0 o
