A Life Story in Poems

By Paul F. Dudley

This book provides the reader a new and refreshing approach to reading and analyzing poetry. Many of the poems have been deconstructed by the author detailing what he was thinking at the time of writing and what motivated him to write the poem or lyrics.Thus the accumulation of poems depict a life story which reveals much about the man who wrote them. This book provides variety in poetic content and format which stimulates continued interest in reading to satisfy the reader's curiosity. It is safeto say that this book is different and full of surprises. Try it!

• Language: English
• Publisher: AuthorHouse
• Release date: Sep 17, 2008
• ISBN: 9781452072784

Paul F. Dudley

Paul F. Dudley is a retired Colonel in the United States Air Force.In World War II he served in combat in the United States Marine Air Corps in the southwest pacific campaigns. He also served in the United States Air Force in the Vietnam War. His first publication is a Christmas song, "Christmas Eve" which was produced and published on Moontide Records by Tommy DeVito of the famous "Four Seasons." Now again very popular as "The Jersey Boys." Chapter One of this book provides the lyrics for a variety of other music compositions. Great stories!

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© 2010 Paul F. Dudley. All rights reserved.

No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted by any means without the written permission of the author.

First published by AuthorHouse 8/16/2010

ISBN: 978-1-4343-9852-9 (sc)

ISBN: 978-1-4343-9851-2 (hc)

ISBN: 978-1-4520-7278-4 (ebk)

Library of Congress Control Number: 2008908444

Printed in the United States of America

Bloomington, Indiana

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

My very special thanks to Bonni Spivak for her professional editing, counseling, kind consideration and patience which greatly improved my ability to express myself. Her outstanding experience and knowledge of how a manuscript is to be formulated and presented, and her unending attention to detail is also worthy of mention.

I am very grateful to Bob Crawley who taught me my basic book writing skills at The University of Nevada, Las Vegas and motivated me to steer the course to my final accomplishment.

To George David at Computer Learning for his professional training and assistance which he has so willingly and patiently provided to me.

Thanks to the many folks at AuthorHouse for their professional assistance in the submission, development and promotion of this book, particularly David Brooks and Greg Humphrey for their interest and professional guidance.

Special thanks to my wife, Marjorie, for general forbearance and for providing me with the constructive criticism and honest insight into how others might interpret and respond to my writing which has greatly enhanced the finished product.

To my parents, Charles and Lula Dudley, who provided me the positive love, guidance and motivation to fulfill my dreams; my siblings, Gerald, Grace, Virgie, Imogene, Edward, Robert, Howard, Vaughn and Wayne and to all of their wonderful off-spring, and my cousins, nieces and nephews who have encouraged a close and lasting family relationship which includes our in-laws.

Of very special importance, my wife, Marjorie, our children, Barbara, Paul II, Diane, Michael, Linda and James who have been such a great encouragement, inspiration and support to me, and to our grandchildren and great-grandchildren who bring out the will in me to live in good health and watch them grow.

Also not forgotten are my many dear friends, who through my childhood and my adulthood years have helped me to attain the capability to reach my goals in formal education, a positive outlook on life and successful public service to our country.

Foreword

I first met the author of this book several months ago when he contacted me about editing some poems he wished to have published. He invited me to his home to have a look at his manuscript and I was greeted by a delightful older gentleman and his equally charming wife, who both made me feel very much at ease.

Paul explained his writing process to me in this way: he never chooses to write anything, the impetus to write comes almost magically from within. Writing his poetry is never a struggle; rather, it always comes to him almost fully formed. All he does is to write it down. Almost equally intriguing to me is that he writes in a wide variety of poetic styles, an interesting and somewhat uncommon ability.

As he further related to me, the notion of publishing his poems was originally more about the legacy he wished to leave to his many children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren than anything else. Quickly, however, Paul came up with the unique idea of deconstructing his own poems for the benefit of the reader. After a crash immersion into the world of published poetry, he realized that published works tend to be deconstructed by others long after the poet has passed on. But what would happen if the poet actually told you what he was thinking and feeling as the poem was being written?

I immediately latched onto the idea – I know a good thing when I see it – and Paul and I set about preparing his manuscript. It has been one of the happiest and most joyful experiences I’ve had working with an author and I have been a freelance editor for over thirty years.

Paul made it quite clear to me at the outset that it is not his intention to change anyone’s point of view regarding the topics of his poetry. Rather, he merely wishes to entertain by presenting his viewpoint to readers and then allowing the readers to form their own opinions.

The vast majority of the poems come in two parts – the poems themselves and the deconstructions that follow. The other poems – those about his large nuclear family and love poems specifically written for his wife – merely have a brief written overview at the beginnings of their respective chapters. Being highly personal poems, Paul decided that readers should glean their own perspective about them, as he wishes to keep his feelings private.

I rarely write forewords for any of my clients; but I had such a pleasant experience working with both the author and his poems that I hope you enjoy reading them as much as I did.

Bonni Spivak

Las Vegas, Nevada

April, 2008

PREFACE

When you pick up this book, you will probably say to yourself, Well, this is just another book of poems. Please read on and you will not only see into the heart and soul of this author, you will also learn how I see others and how I interpret their thoughts and feelings.

This book of poems is about love and compassion, sometimes happiness, other times sadness, fear and doubt, but much of the time it is about hope and reflections of great experiences.

I do not restrain my obvious feelings regarding some political and controversial subjects. I sometimes express my patriotic side, and at other times I become very critical of policies and issues which are of great concern to our lives and our environment at that particular time and place.

I emphasize that my thoughts and opinions are not expressed for the purpose of influencing readers; my viewpoints are merely expressed to explain the why, where and when of my compositions. I respect the diversity of public opinion.

You may ask what makes this book of poems different from other publications. As you continue to read you will find that I write in unusually varying styles, crossing a broad spectrum of ideas, sometimes with irregular patterns of expression.

These poems will likely take you back to your school days, to high school English literature classes, or to college courses where you studied prose and poetry for English composition or some other recollection. Perhaps you will recall having been assigned the works of a certain author to read, and then had to explain to the teacher and class how you interpreted what the author was thinking, and what he or she was trying to say. Once you had expressed your opinion, perhaps the rest of the class would discuss the works and offer their interpretations as well. Finally, the teacher would provide you with a professional analysis of the author and that particular presentation. Generally, in this scenario, the author had passed away many years before, leaving very little explanation as to what he or she was thinking at the time of that creation. Under such circumstances it leaves all of us, professional and student alike, guessing.

To enjoy these poems to their fullest, read them in the sequence that I intended. My writing is generally outlined in an arrangement so that you may read the poem, prose or lyrics and then pause to evaluate my presentation and try to determine what I was thinking and what I was expressing in my message. This is the point where you will find this book to be different. You may then turn to the deconstruction in Part Two, and find the answer, not from some other source, but from me. In some instances, you will be in for a surprise.

I have, however, left some of my accomplishments to be treated as a mystery. I leave you to your own imagination as to what caused me to write a particular work, what I was thinking at the time and why I chose a certain style of expression.

This book is ideal for individuals who like the excitement of reading the works of authors and attempting to interpret what they have written and why they wrote what they did. It is also ideal for classroom study, because in most cases, I have provided you with my personal motivations and inspirations.

Professionals who analyze the styles and content of an author’s material should enjoy the challenge of determining the traits and characteristics of this writer. That mystery will be left for them to decide.

I wish you to enjoy what I have provided for all to read. I would like for you to understand what motivated me to express myself in writing. My purpose is to stimulate thought and encourage the reader to better understand our environment. I certainly do not attempt to impress anyone with my artful correctness in writing. I generally write on impulse, expressing my thoughts spontaneously, and as quickly as I can write them. I do, however, leave some portions of my compositions to the will of your imagination. Please read on and enjoy the pleasures of participating in this enlightening approach.

Paul F. Dudley

Contents

CHAPTER I

The Little Newsboy

Day Is Done

Just Another Dream

Don’t Take Christ Out of Christmas

So It Is, with You, My Love

A Christmas Call

The Beauty of Christmas

You Are the Reason for My Existence

A Prairie Awakening

Christmas Eve

A Song of Protest

Happy Hanukkah, Merry Christmas

Millennium New Year

CHAPTER II

A Wish

A Cowboy and His Hat

Life’s Race

A New Look

A Meadow Lark to Be

Road Rage

CHAPTER III

Family

My Parents

My Oldest Brother Gerald

My Sister Grace

To My Sister Virgie

My Sister Imogene

My Brother Ed

Brother’s Drafted

My Brother Howard

My Brother Vaughn

My Brother Wayne

My Niece Marge

My Cousin Ted

Brother and Friend

CHAPTER IV

A River’s End

Whistling Wind

My Grandfather’s Clock

Deep Sleep

My Destiny

That Old Pump Well Platform

Thoughts

In the Eyes of a Child

He’s Just a Cat

Sparkles

A Lonely Little Cloud

The Mailman

Spirits of the Past

A Sailor’s Fate

Old Timer Talk

To Our Friend Jack

Meteorite Consequence

Memorable Dreams

Fly Outside the Circle

Looking Upward

Man on the Sidewalk

Convalescent Thoughts

My Last Log Entry

CHAPTER V

An Ode to the Generation Gap

I Saw the Streets of Saigon

The Epitaph of War

Work for Unity

The Vicious Cycle

Up From Kitty Hawk

Old Warriors

A Boy Scout and His Flag

Memorial Day Reflections

CHAPTER VI

The Fall of Nature and Man

Let Us Save Our Christmas Trees

Everlasting Christmas Tree

Our Environmental Evolution

CHAPTER VII

Mother of Mothers

A Card Search

To My Wife on Her Birthday

My Valentine

Jumpin’ Halloween

Another Halloween

My Anniversary Rose

On this Anniversary

The Christmas Cycle

CHAPTER VIII

A Christmas Prayer

When All Is Good

A Prayer

Another Prayer

Inquiry to God

A Searching Prayer

My Birthday Prayer

If Only One Prayer

A Final Prayer

A Pilot’s Reflections

Eternal Flight

The Last Take Off

Hawk in a Tree

An Angel Returns

A Thanksgiving Prayer

Death

CHAPTER IX

For You My Love

When We Unite to Stay

Lasting Devotion

Love Comparisons

My Dreams Along the Way

Marriage

If I Love You

The Big Difference

CHAPTER X

The Honor Guard

CHAPTER I

THE LITTLE NEWSBOY

DAY IS DONE

Just Another Dream

Don’t Take Christ out of Christmas

A Christmas Call

A Prairie Awakening

Christmas Eve

A Song of Protest

Happy Hanukkah, Merry Christmas

Millennium New Year

CHAPTER II

A Wish

A Cowboy and His Hat

Life’s Race

A New Look

A Meadow Lark to Be

Road Rage

CHAPTER III

My Parents

Brother’s Drafted

My Niece Marge

My Cousin Ted

Brother and Friend

CHAPTER IV

A River’s End

Whistling Wind

My Grandfather’s Clock

Deep Sleep

My Destiny

That Old Pump Well Platform

In the Eyes of a Child

He’s Just a Cat

SPARKLES

A LONELY LITTLE CLOUD

THE MAILMAN

Spirits of the Past

A SAILOR’S FATE

OLD TIMER TALK

TO OUR FRIEND JACK

METEORITE CONSEQUENCE

MEMORABLE DREAMS

FLY OUTSIDE THE CIRCLE

LOOKING UPWARD

MAN ON THE SIDEWALK

CONVALESCENT THOUGHTS

CHAPTER V

An Ode to the Generation Gap

I Saw the Streets of Saigon

THE EPITAPH OF WAR

WORK FOR UNITY

The Vicious Cycle

UP FROM KITTY HAWK

OLD WARRIORS

A BOY SCOUT AND HIS FLAG

MEMORIAL DAY REFLECTIONS

CHAPTER VI

FALL OF NATURE AND MAN

Let Us Save Our Christmas Trees

Everlasting Christmas Tree

OUR ENVIRONMENTAL EVOLUTION

CHAPTER VII

JUMPIN’ HALLOWEEN

Another Halloween

THE CHRISTMAS CYCLE

CHAPTER VIII

A CHRISTMAS PRAYER

WHEN ALL IS GOOD

INQUIRY TO GOD

A SEARCHING PRAYER

MY BIRTHDAY PRAYER

A PILOT’S REFLECTIONS

ETERNAL FLIGHT

The Last Take Off

Hawk in a Tree

An Angel Returns

A THANKSGIVING PRAYER

Death

CHAPTER IX

LOVE POEMS AND GREETINGS

CHAPTER X

THE HONOR GUARD

A LIFE STORY IN POEMS

PART ONE

CHAPTER I

SONGS, LYRICS AND BALLADS

Music is the melody of life; we can participate,

or we can listen, and from either we can enjoy

the stimulus of tranquility.

PFD

The Little Newsboy

He stands at the city corners,

Yelling the whole day long,

Extra! Fresh from the press, folks!

But they only look and go on.

Chorus:

Oh, he must get so tired of roaming,

Through those city streets alone.

My heart aches at the sight of this poor little newsboy

Without a father, mother or home.

He was standing there all ragged and hungry,

As I was quickly passing by,

I stopped, and I looked for a moment,

As I listened to his hopeless cry.

I put my hand in my pocket,

And pulled out my last fifty cents;

I gave it to the poor little newsboy,

Then, went over and sat on a bench.

I watched him for nearly a minute,

As he looked at the money amazed;

Then he turned and ran like a deerling,

And I haven’t seen him for days.

Perhaps it’s the last I will see him,

But I feel I have done my share,

For the poor little hungry newsboy

With nothing but rags to wear.

Day Is Done

Day is done, work‘s all through,

The western sky is a deep shade of blue,

I’ll saddle my pony and hit the trail,

I’m headin’ to town with a ten dollar bail.

Chorus: (1)

Hi ye, hi yo,

From the ranch house to town is a long way to go,

Hi ye, hi yo,

I’m headin’ to town for the big rodeo.

The roundup is over, the cattle are gone,

I’ve got my money, I’m singin’ a song,

I’ll camp in the mountains, to town I am bound,

I haven’t a home, I’m just roamin’ around.

I’m lookin’ for lovin’, I’ll buy me some wine,

I’ll find me a woman for spendin’ my time,

We’ll dance in the darkness, and love until dawn,

I’ll leave her some memories before movin’ on.

I’ll spend all my money, I’ll have a good time,

And when it’s all over I won’t have a dime,

I’ll saddle my pony, to the ranch house I’ll go,

I’m just a young cowboy; it’s the life that I know.

Chorus: (2)

Hi ye, hi yo,

From town to the ranch house is a long way to go,

Hi ye, hi yo,

I’ll be earnin’ my money for the next rodeo.

Just Another Dream

There you stand, before my very eyes,

Why must you be a dream that fades away and dies?

You know I love you so, why do you come and go?

I can’t believe you’re just another dream.

Chorus

Just a few nights ago I left you, and with you I left all my love;

The nights are so long and so empty, the moon sends no light from above.

Why do I always keep dreaming, only to find when I wake,

That all of my dreams were mistaken, my beautiful