Tom and Kenne Turner — Image by joy
We are hairy men
who may be thought of a “Twits,”
but I dare say, are not.
Why you might ask?
If you look closely, you will not see
tasty morsels in our beards,
while Twits upon close review
will have tiny little specks
of dried-up scrambled eggs.
So says Roald Dahl,
and he should know
of all the disgusting things
found in the beard of a twit,
but, no need to hold your noses.
So, what is it these hairy men
are trying to hide?
Is it an ugly face, you ask?
No, not really,
for we are two guys
possessing good thoughts,
which shone out of our faces
like sunbeams,
so we will always look lovely.
Again, Roald Dahl, should know:
‘If a person has ugly thoughts,
it begins to show on the face.
And when that person
has ugly thoughts every day,
every week, every year,
the face gets uglier and uglier
until it gets so ugly
you can hardly bear to look at it.’
Even so, on this sand grain day
in the bent bay’s grave
I celebrate and spurn
my driftwood seventy-first
wind turned age.
Yet, I remain steadfast
in Shakespeare’s fifth stage
in The Seven Stages of Man,
still acquiring wisdom,
enjoying the finer things in life
and remain very attentive to my appearance,
trying to live life at its fullest,
preparing for the final stages of life.
Shall seventy-one bells sing struck?
kenne
I can’t let this pass without again sharing Dylan Thomas’ Poem On His Birthday.
Related articles
- Roald Dahl stamps honour classic children’s author (guardian.co.uk)
- The Twits (bondwithbooks.wordpress.com)
- Roald Dahl’s best-loved novels celebrated with a set of special stamps – pictures (mirror.co.uk)
- Quentin Blake: Picture Gallery (telegraph.co.uk)
Thank you for sharing this Dylan poem. I’ve heard Dad speak these same words (at least the beginning of it) at each birthday gathering for years. Happy Birthday!
. . . now you know where I first hearylan poemd the lines from the Dylan poem.
Good Lord, Kenne. If you wanted to make my day, just put some photographs and a great poem together, then mix it with a reading by Dylan Thomas and his genius of a voice and poetry, and I shall smile. Good Lord, I promise to smile. Thank you. Thank you.
Verations of this posting have become an annual thing. It’s always worth the revisit.
Reblogged this on Becoming is Superior to Being and commented:
This entry on this blog was seven years ago on my birthday. Then as now it’s not possible for me to celebrate my birthday without thinking of brother, Tom. For years before his death, he would write or call, each time quoting Dylan Thomas. This week on my birthday I went for a nature walk in Sabino Canyon, sharing it with other nature lovers.
Much has changed in the last seven years — life is given, and life is taken away. It is up to each one of us to make the best of what we are given. — kenne
Inspiring to hear a voice from the past speak his poetic truth. Certainly a “lovely” photo of you and your brother. 🙂 Loved the humor about beards. <3 Happiest of birthdays from Canada, Kenne.
Thanks for the comment, Olga.
Kenne, this must be one of your best posts, ever.
Tom and I were always close, even when miles apart. He had a Master’s in English, taught high school and was girls track coach. Today, many women know him as “Coach Turner.” I learned a lot from my younger brother.
Like all of us, he had his demons and rather than trying to escape from his death, did everything to tighten the strings of the net, to paraphrase Federico Garcia Lorca. Thanks for the comment.