In Tribute to Patricia Fillingham (1923-2007)

This is a tribute to someone, who in addition to being a fine poet, was also a good friend of ours.

Smileys
By Edward S. Gault

It’s always when I get on the computer,
That you jump up into my lap.
Before I can even get the screen up,
Papa, I want smileys
So I tell you
As I have often told you
That the smileys are on their way-
They’re in their cars now,
And driving to our house.
Maybe they’re just stuck in traffic.
At long last (finally!) the screen does come up,
And I move the arrow over to
The yellow smile on the toolbar and click the mouse
And the box comes up with all your smileys.
I want the Kitty smileys, Papa.
I go to the animal section of the box and click it with the mouse
And all the cat smileys come up
And we scroll down to the bottom
To see every last one
(For the umpteenth ging quin killionth time);
Then there are the puppy smileys,
The bird smileys,
The fish smileys.
We go through them all
(Yes, umpteen ging quin killion times)
Like touring a virtual cartoon zoo.
I want the monkey smileys, Papa
But I thought you didn’t like the monkey smileys!?
Yet we see them anyway
I want the elephant smileys, Papa
I bring them up
I want the big elephants, Papa
How are we going to get a big elephant out of the computer?
Through the door, Papa
And you pointed to the smiley box on the screen
You remembered the story that I read to you on Christmas
About the girl who brought home the elephant
To grow up in her house*
We watch together as the little yellow smiley climbs up onto the elephant
And slides down its trunk, over and over again
Ging quin killion times.

*Anna’s Elephant by Patricia Fillingham.

Copyright 2008