Lawrence Hall
Mhall46184@aol.com
https://hellopoetry.com/lawrence-hall/
poeticdrivel.blogspot.com
Participation Ribbons
John Wayne as Steve Williams: “How'd you do last season?”
Charles Coburn as Father Malone: “We showed up for every game.”
Steve Williams: “I'd say that was raw courage.”
-Trouble Along the Way (1953)
I’ve heard of participation ribbons
But I’ve never seen one. Do they exist?
People seem to disapprove of them
But participation means showing up
There are those who wake up every morning
Feed the kids breakfast, fire up an old car
Make the school run, and then are off to work
At the cafe’, the store, or the auto shop
That’s participation, all right, and courage
A ribbon? Most folks deserve a medal
As a farm boy, a university dropout, a brown-water sailor, an ambulance driver, an offshore worker, a factory hand, an LVN, a teacher, and a father I have never seen a participation ribbon. If you, dear reader, were ever given one of those mythological constructs I’d sure like to hear from you. And I do mean you, about the one you received, not what you’ve read or heard.
