Welcome to this wonderful world that you are born in,
Replete with natural beauty, heavens with stars twinkling;
Even though hatred, terror and dark forces too abound,
The innate goodness of human nature keeps us smiling.
You have chosen to be born on a very special day,
On which Plum, of whom your grandfather is an ardent fan, was born;
Many admirers of his continue to rejoice all over the world,
Many of his works do their bookshelves adorn.
You have brought great joy into the lives of your parents,
As you grow, you shall surely return their nurturing ways;
They plan to bring you up with lots of love and care,
Your innocent smiles and hugs shall brighten their days.
May Thos and Edwin never set the standards of your conduct,
May dousing fires with paraffin wax never come to your mind;
May you be humble, caring, never casting a supercilious gaze,
May thoughts of making butter slides you always leave behind.
May your intellect be always one up on that of Jeeves,
Your investigative skills as sharp as those of Baxter the efficient;
In culinary skills, may you surpass Anatole, in smartness, Psmith,
A heart that bleeds for its pals may also be sufficient.
May you never have an Aunt who forces her plans on you,
When settling down to a matrimonial bliss with a loving wife;
Candidature of a Florence or a Madeline you ought to avoid,
May you be the Little Bingo to the Rosie M Banks of your life.
May you acquire literary tastes early on in your life,
Start dishing out Plummy narratives without further delay;
Perhaps replacing telegrams with WhatsApp messages,
Since you may find it challenging to keep technology at bay.
On your slender shoulders you carry a mighty responsibility,
That of spreading cheer amongst the less fortunate ones;
Upholding the Code of the Woosters could be rather exciting,
The roses of your literary works may even silence the guns.
One wishes you a long and healthy life, full of laughter and love,
A sunny disposition to face the harsh slings and arrows of life;
A chin-up attitude, a song in the heart, a prayer on your lips,
Guardian Angels who fuss over you and protect you from many a strife.
(Note: Yours truly was recently given to understand that on the 15th of October, 2016, a grandson was born in the family of an ardent Australian fan of P G Wodehouse. The child has been named Clarence. This impromptu composition is addressed to him.)
My dear Ashok, I am overwhelmed. This is wonderful. I shall pass it on to Clarence’s parents and hope they understand our mutual admiration for the great man and the appreciation for what they have done (albeit inadvertently). With your permission I should also like to reblog it on The Traveller. Thank you.
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Pleasure is mine, Noel. Please do so as and when convenient.
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My family loves the poem. Even if they don’t understand all the references, they understand the meaning and the sentiment behind it. Thanks again.
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You are welcome. My best wishes to all of them, including Clarence.
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Hi, Noel. Hope you and your family are safe and well. If I wish to draw your attention to a blog post of mine, how do I do that? You do not seem to be on one of the Facebook PGW groups. Regards
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You may like this one: https://ashokbhatia.wordpress.com/2021/02/14/dear-jasper-john-happy-birthday.
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This is so lovely Ashok. What a wonderful thing to write for a newborn.
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Thank you. Am glad you like it!
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Dear dear Ashokji. I am overwhelmed. I recollect, there was some problem and my response could not be posted/ publushed then. No…. soon afer, my grandson went down with Covid and passed away. We were distraught. I remember my sending you the photo.
You have given me attributes which I enjoyed reading about. But whether I will ever rise up to them, I do not know.
Here is to our very dwar Plum, he keeos me young. His books are the Elexir.
Thank you dear friend.
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Thank you Sushama ji. Just as Plum is an elixir, you are a role model for many of us!
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Ashok, you are a gem. Our young Clarence is thriving, thank you. For you to remember is a treat. Hope all is well with you.
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Good to know this, Noel. I am well, thank you. Btw, some time back, I briefed one of my grandsons (he turned eight this year) about Potato Chip being friendly with a cat. Since then, he has become a bit matey with a neighbourhood cat and makes it a point to identify Potato Chip out of the 15-odd horses at a nearby farm.
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