Ronna Benjamin
“Oh the Places You’ll Go!“ by Dr. Seuss – it’s quite the gift! But what about us? Don’t we need a lift?
Thanks (and apologies) to Dr. Seuss for the inspiration and the best lines and to my husband, Mike, and Eddie and Doug, for helping me out with this…
Congratulations!
Today is your Day,
You’ve dropped the Kid Off
Hurry Up, Get Away!
You still have Brains in Your Head
You still have Feet that work too
So away with the Tears,
You’ve got some Living to do!
No more driving to Soccer, no more Lunches to Make,
No more Papers to look at, no more Cookies to Bake,
No more Carpools!
No more Recitals! No more Saturday Night Plays!
No more Whining! No more Yelling!
Hoo-ray for Today!
If you look at her Room, no doubt you’ll feel Sad
Her Teddy, Her Blankie …but remember…that Grad
Spilled nail polish on the Carpet the day it was Laid
(You can still see the Spot if you look where she Played.)
You Taught her not to mix up her Left with her Right,
Not to be Scared of things that go Bump in the Night,
To Read and to Swim and to Tie up those Laces,
And how to stick Wax in the Places for Braces.
Now you’ve Done your Job,
She’s Off on her own,
So What’s Next for You
Now that the kids are all Grown?
Listen Up, My Friend,
Take the advice of old Ronna McFee:
It’s the best time of Life,
When you’re finally Free…You’ll Agree! You’ll See!
You can Steer yourself any Direction you Choose
In a car with Two Seats! And a Top you can Lose!
You can Read, you can Run, you can start a New Job,
You can get a new Husband (one that isn’t a Slob!)
So tell me Sweetheart,
why you still bitchin’?
You can do what you want!
Heck, have sex in the kitchen!
So GO! Look up and down Streets, look ‘em over with Care.
About Some you will say, “I choose NOT to go there.”
But be sure when you step, step with Care and great Tact.
So you don’t end up with a Hip that is Cracked.
(I’m sorry to say so, but sadly it’s true, yes, bang ups and hang ups can happen to you)
And You’re Smart and you’ve lived enough to know what you Like
Go by Train, or by Car, or even by Trike!
Write it down! Write it down! So you don’t just go Roam
(It’s important to remember the way to get Home.)
They’ll be Scrapes, they’ll be ruts, they’ll be Dips and Forks
But Onward you go…should you go to New York?
Or Nevada, or Paris or Timbuktu?
Wherever you go, it’s all up to you.
Some days all the Roads may seem covered with Crap
In which case, my friend, it’s time for a Nap!
But before you lay down, you might pause to Think
That 19 years went by in a Blink
That you’ve done a great Job,
That they’re Independent and Free
Now’s YOUR time
To be who YOU want to Be!