Comment from --Turtle.

Excellent

as bit by bit, the tandle pyre grew higher.
(I recall reading this one, long time ago. I couldn't think of a word to say, though I'd enjoyed the poem. It has a whimsical flow and great visual grounding as the reader gets a sense of people, a family community, and a outside bash.)

as bureaucrats conspired to end our fun.
(a change of tone, from wild and crazy to... forced straight laces.)

they vegetate, and wait for life to end.
(from one extreme to the other, for some crowds)

for they can be adults another day.
(We have to drive a little farther to play outside in the grass and dirt, but getting outside when the weather's nice keeps me off the computer too. Though, when it's cold and rainy... makes for cuddling up to a screen together all the more fun.)

Balance is nice, and it's easy to get out of balance.

 Comment Written 27-Dec-2018

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reply by the author on 28-Dec-2018

Balance is always the best approach, 100% agreement from me. Thanks for the great comments, Turtle. Glad you enjoyed. Craig

Comment from BeasPeas

Excellent

This is a dynamite poem, Craig. It encapsulates the coddling of the nanny state--"for our own good." Excellent rant poem with tons of common sense--a lost art--common sense. I particularly like this:
"I miss those nights when I was around eight,
before our land became a nanny state;
and simple pleasures vanished one by one
as bureaucrats conspired to end our fun."
Marilyn

 Comment Written 02-May-2018

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reply by the author on 02-May-2018

Thanks very much for the lovely comments, Marilyn. I feel sorry for today's kids, who miss out on so much of what we enjoyed. Cheers, Craig

Comment from Mustang Patty

Excellent

Hi, Craig;
I totally agree with you about the kids of today. Forced to go straight home after school and left alone with the computer and television for 'fun' until Mom and Dad come home to make dinner, we have a generation of people who do not experience all that life has to offer.

Great use of 'tandle,' a great alternative name for a bonfire,

~patty~

 Comment Written 02-May-2018

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reply by the author on 02-May-2018

Thanks again for the wonderful comments, Patty. We also have a generation of people who don't seem to be able to communicate without a "device". Much appreciated - Craig

Comment from Pearl Edwards

Excellent

Totally agree with your sentiments in this one about the fun that cracker nights used to be and now the kids are banned from almost anything that we called fun. Love today's word - tandle - like a tall candle. Enjoyed this Craig,
cheers,
valda

 Comment Written 02-May-2018

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reply by the author on 02-May-2018

Thanks very much for the lovely review, Valda. I think cracker night used to be my favourite night of the year - even better than Christmas. Cheers, Craig

Comment from LIJ Red

Excellent

A Georgian who owned no slaves was once called a cracker. The term expanded to include all white midsouth working chaps. So it's time to "call in the dogs, pee on the tandle and head for the house". Excellent. Enjoyed the rhyming verses

 Comment Written 02-May-2018

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reply by the author on 02-May-2018

Thanks very much for the kind words and for a new meaning to the word "cracker". Much appreciated - Craig

Comment from Gloria ....

Excellent

Man alive, that is a bonfire and a half. I've never seen one that big.

Ha, and the sky rockets near Mars. That's big too. Yeesh.

I know it's so sad how everyone takes the fun out of everything and it isn't even always bureaucrats. Sometimes it's little old ladies.

Excellent poem Craig. This sounds like an adventure worth experiencing.

Gloria

 Comment Written 01-May-2018

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reply by the author on 01-May-2018

Cracker nights were always great fun. Not so much for our poor dog, who hated them. I think that's one of the few times she was allowed in the house. Yes, things were different when I was a kid... even apart from dinosaurs roaming the streets :) Many thanks, Gloria.

Comment from Joy Graham

Excellent

Oooh, I enjoyed the whole experience of this poem :) I can recall campfires. So much fun. I don't think I was at one as big as yours. I'd be the scaredy cat hiding a good distance away. I love that mom does the first aid for burns. Kids around here don't seem to play outside anymore. Parents are too afraid the kids will get snatched I guess. I can feel the heat from the fire, see the fireworks going off, and feel the happy atmosphere. Well done with this poem.

 Comment Written 01-May-2018

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reply by the author on 01-May-2018

Thanks very much for the lovely review, Joy. Glad you were able to "see yourself" in the picture :) Craig

Comment from nancy_e_davis

Excellent

I wish that for every child. Let them be children. Take away the smart phones and pc's. They are growing old without muscles or sunshine. Maybe those Aliens they talk about, "The Grays" did come from the future and they are what our children became after a hundred or more years.
That's a scary thought. Good job Craig. Nancy

 Comment Written 01-May-2018

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reply by the author on 01-May-2018

Thank you very much for the lovely review, Nancy. Much appreciated - Craig

Comment from Sandra du Plessis

Excellent

A very well-written heartfelt and sad poem. Our children and especially our grandchildren do not know about playing outdoors. They are only watching Tv OR playing computor games. It is truly a sad situation.

 Comment Written 01-May-2018

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reply by the author on 01-May-2018

Thanks very much for a lovely review, Sandra. We could well be raising the first generation of couch potatoes. Cheers, Craig

Comment from Alexander Vasa

Excellent

Hello, great story about Cracker night in this poem and you always pick the most unusual words. I liked the sound of this one. Your poetry is easy to read and interesting. Always something a bit different about your work. Thanks, and it is one I'd recommend for review, Ana.

 Comment Written 01-May-2018

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reply by the author on 01-May-2018

Thank you very much for the lovely comments, Ana. I am most grateful for the kind remarks - Craig