Seventeen

Stop the music! Stop the press!
Here is news we can't supress.
Biggest scoop we've ever seen,
Terri is now seventeen!

Only yesterday it seems --
She won favors with her screams.
Parents now can hardly glean --
Terri is now seventeen!

Enter now those wondrous years,
Full of life and free from fears;
Ever joyful, poised, serene;
Terri, you're now seventeen.

Written for Terri

Secret of Happiness

Come, live with me in "Happiness,"
The name of my home town;
Where life is shorn of strife and stress --
And no one wears a frown.

No map can aid you in your quest,
Though it's not hard to find.
Come, live with me in peace and rest.
It's in the State of. . . . . .Mind.

Dedicated to Judy

Your Gentle Touch

I felt your touch, t'was e'er so light,
Your presence there made all things right.
The leaden skies, their drapes withdrew --
To let a ray of sunshine through.

Though just a touch, it calmed my fears --
And helped allay those bitter tears.
A thousand words! None helped so much --
As when I felt your gentle touch.

Earth has no pain time cannot heal,
For grief will fade when friends are real.
God grant that He who gave so much --
Protect and keep your gentle touch.

Written for Mary Kay