December Magazine

Contents: TWO POEMS, A SALUTE TO DECEMBER AND TO THE NUMBER TWELVE, plus some Duogesimal Meanderings

 

A SCIENCE POEM

E=mc2

Nothing is faster than light

I conceptualized the race

(It was a thought experiment)

And, well, Nothing won…

******************************

     A CHILD’S POEM

Fat and Skinny had a race

All around the pillow case

Fat fell down and broke his face

Skinny won the race

 

What a terrific poem! Better than that science one I just made up about Nothing. I remember “Fat and Skinny had a race” from the depths of my childhood. Apparently, my brain, and most likely your brain, too, and all of our poor, tired, little brains, are sprinkled with these memory traces: poems, nursery rhymes and ditties – cultural imprints if you will (every culture has ’em ) – little rhymes and songs that remain with us for life, just sitting there, hanging out up there inside our crania, all electrically coded into the grey and white matter of our poor, over-evolved brains. They (the ditties, not any of the grey matter, thank Goodness) occasionally rise to the surface as what we call “memories”. Anyhoo, the rhyme about Fat and Skinny is one I can clearly recall knowing and singing at a very early age. I recall that, as a toddler, I pictured Laurel and Hardy running around a bed, racing in circles. I associate the song with my grandmother – I’m sure she recited it to me – which gives the silly poem a very warm glow for me, not to mention the Laurel and Hardy image.

Fat and Skinny had a race

I thought I said not to mention Laurel and Hardy image!

All around the pillow case

Fat fell down and broke his face

Skinny won the race

******************

 

Hail December! The Twelfth month!

 

Hail to the number twelve. Three cheers (four times) for the ol’ 12, the number with so many easy factors: 2,6, 3,4. The number on the top of the clock! Hurray for the end of the Julian year, and the beginning of a new one. Twelve more months! Twelve more reasons to celebrate. Hurray (12 hurrays) for Marina Kanavaki for creating such beautiful calendars for us!

The word twelve, whose early English-Germanic roots derive from “two left”, or two left over after counting to ten, completes the cycle for us. After twelve o’clock we start counting the hours again. Every day (actually twice a day) we count twelve hours. And you know, of course, what time it is when your clock strikes thirteen? That’s right! Time to get your clock fixed!

Happy Holiday Season to all! Dozens of long-stemmed roses for the twelve days of Christmas. Twelve songs of praise from the Twelve chromatic notes, Twelve hurrahs from the Twelve Tribes of Israel. Additionally, twelve shout-outs from the Twelve signs of the zodiac! Hail the 12 and Happy Holidays and a Happy New Year to all!

Here’s Twelve Gates to the City to get you started on a happy twelfth month.

******************************************