And so it was that once upon a time,
the tribe of Eric, son of Dan,
loaded nearly all their worldly possessions
upon donkeys and camels
and set out for the land of warmth and sun,
far, far, away.
Even so when it had still been the first month,
of the year of our Lord,
long before the time of departure was at hand,
the children of the tribe did smile,
sighing with happiness
and longing for the day to arrive.
But the mother of the tribe did not smile
and was much troubled about
and did hurry and scurry,
collecting, piling, removing, adding,
and so forth, until all the bags were packed,
repacked and packed again.
And she, seeing the piles, did heave a sigh
and wonder if they were leaving anything behind.
For lo, was there even a Walmart to be found
in the land of the south?
And so it was that the day did arrive
and many a bag was stashed into place,
leaving only but a small spot here and there
for the children of the tribe to recline.
And when darkness had descended upon the earth,
they did board the camels and donkeys
for their long journey,
all the while being wrought with envy
over acquaintances who did pay the fare of a jet.
But survive they did, even though the driving night
was never-ending and it did feel after mile upon mile
as if the sun might never rise again.
But just as the good Lord said it would, it rose,
along with the children of the tribe,
and lo, it was evident that they were still far, far from
the land of warmth and sun.
And their hearts were weary and heavy-laden
and their eyes gritty and tired,
along with their brains.
But lo it was, many, many hours later
that the camels and donkey, laden down with burdens,
did clop into the land of sun and warmth.
And the children of the tribe were exceedingly happy
and did exclaim over the sun and the smell
of the ocean waves.
But the Mother of the tribe only longed
for a place on which to lay her weary head,
but it was not so to be, for donkeys and camels
were yet still laden down with burdens and bundles.
And when it was that they were finally settled,
there were days of castles in the sand,
the taste of saltwater on the lips,
hours of splashing to and fro
in great craters filled with water,
and minutes of quiet and chirping birds.
Fruits of the vines of the land of warmth and sun
did they eat with great delight.
They did also consume great quantities of
frozen goodness, drinks of caffeine,
along with fish, chips and all manner of good foods.
Much reading of books, stories, and studies
were done while warming under the great sun.
Friends and family from afar
were summoned and gathered and much to-do
was made of food and fellowship.
And so it was, that once relaxation had begun,
that the minutes, hours, days, and week
did speed by at a frightening speed
and so great was the whoosh of it,
that they were left wondering in amazement,
“What has happened and where has it gone?”
And lo, the days of relaxation and fun
did come to a harsh and sudden end.
And much weeping and wailing did threaten
at the mere thought of reenacting
all of the previous steps taken
to reach the land of sun and warmth.
But so it was to be,
and they did pack their donkeys and camels
with burdens aplenty, (many that they had not needed)
and did squish in the children of the tribe
and begin to traverse to the land of the North
where home, family, and community did await them.
And a good time was had by all.
