In the late 1970Õs and the early 1980Õs, we (Judy, Jen, Josh, and I) were enamored with the words of A.A. Milne, especially the collection of nursery rhymes entitled ÒNow We Are Six.Ó On many a night, these were the last words Jen and Josh heard as they fell to sleep and into dreams. I was also struck by the fact that Milne was a veteran of both world wars. Somehow he was able to pull himself away from the first world war to immerse himself into a childÕs world. And write his whimsical poems. He is the inspiration for these poems youÕll find in this collection.
When Judy and I moved up to central Maine, we were looking for educational alternatives for Jen and Josh. We were very fortunate to find Carol ScribnerÕs Village School. Carol was superintendent, principal, bus driver, and teacher for a school where the arts were as important as math and science. There were maybe a dozen students enrolled at one time pursuing CarolÕs elementary school and middle school curricula. Everyone, including the parents, flourished under CarolÕs watchful eye. When Jen and Josh moved into the public schools, I wrote this poem for Carol:
TO CAROL: MY CHILDREN'S TEACHER
AND THE MOON
COULD BE A WISE FISHERWOMAN
HAULING HER JEWELED NET
THROUGH OUR SEAS
AND YOU TOO
COULD BE OF THE MOON
HAVING PULLED YOUR TENDER WEB
THROUGH MY SON AND DAUGHTER
THESE PAST FIVE YEARS
AND AS THE SEA
FOLLOWING THE MOON
FORMS THE SHORE
SO HAVE YOU COME
THROUGH THEM
TO SHAPE ME
Now decades later we are moving in and out of the worlds of our granddaughters, Xochitl and Iona. Their drawings and paintings adorn the pages of this collection, as they, while reading these poems, weave their way through the earlier lives of their mother and uncle. From one generation to the next the wonderful world of poetry builds bridges to carry us all through the years ahead. In that spirit, we have left the last bakerÕs dozen of pages open for you, dear reader, to write in your own poems or to sketch in your own dreams. Enjoy! And then pass them onÉÉ.