The Gist of Life Ain’T What It Was

By Robert Perdue

The Gist of Life Ain't What It Was is a trip through the life experience of an ordinary man who has seen times change through the Depression Era, World War II, and beyond . Bob describes life's ups and downs through poetry, sometimes humerous and sometimes sobering but always entertaining.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Xlibris US
• Release date: Dec 28, 2012
• ISBN: 9781479736041

Robert Perdue

My career began when my life began, on April 21, 1925 in a small hamlet in WV called Mead Poca, long since absorbed by Mullens and renamed South Mullens. At my age 5 we moved to a farm atop a mountain to the south called Gobler’s Knob; our mailing address became Tralee, WV; now that, too has been deleted. At my age 12, our family relocated again, this time moving to Roanoke, Va. My experience includes high school at William Fleming High in Roanoke; 3-years in the US Navy; Roanoke College in Salem, Va.; VA Tech in Blacksburg, Va. My interest in writing grew from a vital interest in words; i.e. writing in poetic form fascinated me; this book is the product.

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Syllabus

The title of this book and its theme are synonymous. Its content is a desultory series of somewhat critical essays, in poetic form, about the conduct—or the misconduct—of social & civil affairs in the USA today. Collectively it’s an opinion; so, we must realize that what we see depends on how we look at things and that at any moment what we are is the sum total of all the things we have been; i.e., our total experience shapes our character and none of us is so good that he has lots of room to criticize others. What you see is not always what you get.

Interspersed are idyllic poems and mildly humorous comments about comical events in the everyday life of the author.

The Gist of Life Ain’t What It Was implies that, in general terms, life at another time must have been better—or, at least, someone thought so.

Signed: Robert C. Perdue

Roanoke, Virginia 24012

October 10, 2012

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A sense of Living Is Joy Enough

By Robert Perdue

What a joy, just being alive

in the early days of Spring;

Air so crisp, sky so blue,

and sounds of Nature ring.

A sense of living is joy enough

so said an eminent bard;

‘twas long ago that line was writ’

when daily life was hard.

Living now is just the same

as living was back then;

Seasons come in order now

just like it’s always been.

Birds and blooms proliferate

in arrant splash of hue;

Nature’s dazzling color display

surpasses what we do.

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(c) copyright 1998, Robert C. Perdue

Cows Can’t Dance

They walked in silence down the lane,

the sky was full of stars;

They came up to the garden gate,

he lifted down the bars;

He asked her if she’d like to dance,

indeed she knew not how;

For he was just a country boy,

and she a Jersey cow.

In Retrospect

by Robert Perdue

As I approach my eighty-eighth birthday, I meditate upon these truths:

1.) I’ve never seen a nation of laws and not of men.

2.) I’ve never seen government by the people.

3.) I’ve never seen equal justice before the law; justice is for who can afford it.

4.) I’ve never seen evidence that all men are created equal.

5.) I’ve never seen the races live together in harmony.

6.) I’ve never seen that peace that passeth all understanding.

7.) I’ve never seen an elected representative who is firstly that.

8.) I’ve learned that men of good intent don’t seek public office.

9.) I’ve learned that the size of government is directly proportional to the ineptitude of its members.

10.) I’ve learned that our national government is aptly perceived as organized crime.

11.) I’ve learned that patriotism is a liability.

12.) I’ve learned that the VA is not for veterans; that veteran’s rights are limited or

denied while draft dodgers are elected to the oval office.

13.) I’ve learned that government is the first impediment to the good life.

14.) I’ve learned that who considers the USA a christian nation does not understand christianity.

15.) I’ve learned that the greatest invention that we’ve seen yet is the cut-off switch on a TV set.

16.) I’ve learned that in 2013 all of our experts are teenagers.

17.) I’ve learned that in this age of communication, the one thing that we can’t do well is communicate.

18.) I’ve learned that people are not good enough to live together in peace.

19.) Might a self-destructive human race bring the end of evolution?

20.) I’ve learned that We The People do not react to incessant congressional abuse.

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(c) copyright November 17,1996, Robert C. Perdue

Karen Marie

’Twas a blessed event, so dear to us all,

a new little girl came early that fall.

She was the answer to our fervent prayer;

so, to us one and all ’twas a true love affair.

We sent special praise to our God up above;

He had just sent to us a token of love,

A bundle of joy so frail and so small,

A sign of His love for us one and all.

Linda was there when the small package came,

So, she was invited to help pick a name.

It mattered not much what the name ought to be,

A sweet tiny figure was all we could see.

Choosing a name wouldn’t cause any fuss,

’cause a sweet baby girl’s what she was to us.

We searched for awhile and came to agree,

Her first name’s Karen, the middle’s Marie.

Perdue is her last name, we all were so proud,

We said to each other, and proclaimed it aloud,

She’s our little girl to keep and to love,

So, let us give thanks to our God up above.

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(c) copyright 1996, Robert C. Perdue

(This was written in Charleston, West Virginia

on September 23,1965, Karen’s 13th. birthday.

A State Of Mind

We talk about Him, the God of us all,

and most use He in response to His call.

That God is a person, is a comfort to them

of limited vision when they worship Him.

Few can conceive of God as an It,

Such an unlikely concept is hard to admit.

Having never seen God, on whom we rely,

who could confirm, or refute, or deny?

A three-in-one god’s not easy to grasp;

Father, Son, and Spirit—so much to clasp.

Most let the preacher sort it all out,

’cause the preacher, alone, knows what it’s about.

Where’s to be found the God of us all,

What’s there about It to hold us in thrall?

Man wants to know where he first got his start,

and what’s there about him that sets him apart.

Men seek to learn what they can about God.

We travel the pathways our Savior once trod.

The mind of man needs food for its thought,

He worships the marvels he thinks God