It wasn’t much fun to be sick as a child.
I’m sure you would agree.
One thing, however, made it worthwhile:
LUCY on TV.
 
Morning reruns of I LOVE LUCY
Were a daily must.
And if the TV was out of order?
Oh, no! That was a bust!
 
How many years we watched Lucy,
Well, it’s hard to say.
I watched her up through my high school years;
But I’d even watch her today.
 
Every summer morning and every
Winter and spring vacation
Meant a daily dose of Lucy.
We watched with utter elation.
 
So what if we’d seen a particular show
Ten times in the past.
Each time watching I LOVE LUCY
Was just as fun as the last.
 
Watching her get into a jam
In every episode
Was exactly what we looked forward to—
And then watching Ricky explode.
 
Just the look on Lucy’s face
Was all that it would take
To make us all break out in laughter—
So much that our stomachs would ache.
 
There was Vitameatavegamin
Or Lucy stomping on grapes
Or Lucy and Ethel in the chocolate factory;
The two were always in scrapes.
 
It didn’t matter how silly the plot—
How corny, how dumb or inane—
Laughing at Lucy would lighten the heart.
Who needed food for the brain?
 
If there was a snag, Lucy would find it
And chaos would ensue.
And once the cat was out of the bag,
She had some “splaining” to do.
 
We knew the plots backwards and forwards;
We knew the dialogue by heart.
But that didn’t matter; we would still laugh
As Lucy’s schemes fell apart.
 
We owe a lot to Lucy and friends.
There’s a lot to be said
About growing up laughing at Lucy
And Ricky and Ethel and Fred.

- by Bob B