Stories4Satoshis on Nostr: My next children’s book, if I can find an illustrator: Bug Free Dad said he’d buy ...

My next children’s book, if I can find an illustrator:

Bug Free

Dad said he’d buy a bug less house,
One that was cool and clean,
Something without a friendless louse,
Or single roach’s sheen,

He said he’d seal up all the gaps,
Keeping small things at bay,
Bedrooms without lures or traps,
Or clouds of fumes or spray,

He said it once more in my teens,
My brothers were still small,
You’d think there’s be a change of scenes,
But nothing changed at all,

He said there’d be a dining hall,
Where mom could serve our friends,
Our produce from the spring to fall,
With our own tastes and trends,

But when I left our doublewide,
Most things were still the same,
I vowed to find a different tide,
To carry my own name,

On holidays I would visit,
Dad would take me aside,
And say some day that he would miss it,
This bug-filled doublewide,

That sentiment on me was lost,
I planned to start with more,
I’d outrun the runaway cost,
Build up a lasting store,

I tried my hand at all the trades,
And none did I master,
I was no good with shovels, spades,
A one-man disaster,

I met a girl with eyes and curls,
That livened with a laugh,
My mind was never without swirls,
Before whole showed me half,

Returning with a few more boys,
We bought that doublewide,
Creeping things don’t mix well with toys,
Nor with a father’s pride,

I wanted to assure my sons,
It would not stay the same,
That I’d one day gather the funds,
To hit upon my aim,

I asked my dad what he would do,
To sure up my young men,
To build them up and get them through,
This phase of stark and thin,

“Tell them you’ll buy a bug less house,
One that is cool and clean,
Something without a friendless louse,
Or single roach’s sheen,

But add that if by chance you fail,
Your sorrow they may see,
But that won’t be their final tale,
You’ll help them live bug-free.”