The simple act <br />of saying <br /> <br />hello in our household <br /> <br />was a bit of a <br />mouthful: <br /> <br />like doing musical <br />scales. <br /> <br />There was 10 of us <br />to get through <br /> <br />as you came through <br />the Dempsey front door <br /> <br />riffing on the <br />abbreviation of our <br /> <br />pet names <br />so <br /> <br />Donall became Do. <br /> <br />Deirdre became Dee. <br /> <br />Blathin became Blathi became Bla became Bla Bla! <br /> <br />Etc., <br />etc., <br />etc. <br /> <br />So if you were to go <br />on a virtual reality tour <br /> <br />of me aged...oh <br />I don't know <br /> <br />bursting in from scholl <br /> <br />we sounded something <br />a little like this: <br /> <br />'Hi Dee! ' <br />('Hi Do! ') <br /> <br />'lo Lo....'lo Do! ' <br /> <br />'Hi Bi! ' <br />'Hi Mi! ' <br /> <br />('Hi Doooo! ') <br /> <br />'Hiya Gra! ' <br />'Hiya Bar! ' <br /> <br />('Hiya Dooo! ') <br /> <br />'BlaBla! ' <br />'DoDo! ' <br /> <br />OOOOoooops...there's Me. <br />going pellmell <br /> <br />(no time to say hello!) <br /> <br />Junie is <br />always Junie <br /> <br />& at the heart <br />of it all <br /> <br />me Ma <br />(who had the makings <br />of us all) <br /> <br />greeted both <br />with hug & kiss <br />(X & X) <br /> <br />& her first name: <br />''lo lovely lovely Ita! ') <br /> <br />us all waiting for my father <br />to bicycle down the hill <br /> <br />the sheer thrill of him <br /> <br />as we all screamed <br />& squealed: <br /> <br />'Daaaaaaaaaaaaaaa! ' <br /> <br /> <br />(For the 'Hi Bi! ' part of the poem)<br /><br />Dónall Dempsey<br /><br />http://www.poemhunter.com/poem/say-hello-to-the-dempseys/
