PERSONALISED POEMS FOR SPECIAL OCCASIONS

THE BALLAD OF JOE AND GRACE

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T’was in the year of 1956.

‘And God Created Woman’ was showing at the flicks!
A phrase which might have issued from my father’s very lips

When he first clapped eyes upon my mother’s shapely hips.

 

Now Grace and Joe, if you didn’t know, come from the isle of Malta

A sultry place, I’m told to my face, where you shouldn’t drink the water.

And it’s from this vale that they both set sail on a journey that would seal their futures

With my mother cooking for thousands and my father fiddling with sutures.

 

But it was on a train, on the Italian plain, that their paths would first collide

Sharing a tiny carriage, nowhere for Joe to hide.

So he summoned up his courage and asked my Mum the time of day.

Whilst upon his wrist, a brand new watch was proudly on display.

 

Now Mum’s not thick, she figured quick what this bloke was really after,

But they hit it off and the voyage long was shortened by their laughter,

At journey’s end, they parted as friends, addresses were exchanged,

They promised eachother, my father and mother, a tryst would be arranged. 

 

And so it was, again and again, back on the isle of Malta,

A tasty venue, it says on the menu, 

Just don’t drink the water.

Then finally, young Joe could see, the time had really come

To take his lovely Gracie home to meet his wise, old Mum.

 

Now Jerry took no prisoners and looked Grace up and down,

She grilled her re her prospects, education and home town,

She noted her gold earrings, her coat, her make of shoe.

And taking Joe aside she said ‘A bit plump, but she’ll do’.

And I can assure everyone sitting here, that’s absolutely true.

 

And so to 1960, think the Beatles , JFK 

MacMillan’s winds of change are blowing harder every day

The Cold War makes it colder still, The Stones about to roll

With Cassius Clay and Elvis topping every single poll

But amidst all this activity, the only thing that counts,

Is that my parents wed and jumped into bed

on Kerr Street near The Mounts. 

 

And in their dreams, or so it seems, no sooner are they married,

That a baby girl bombards their world and someone calls her Astrid.

(You try rhyming anything with Astrid….)

They soldier on, then comes a son, 

A handsome brute called Dennis,

Who naturally excels at music, chess and table tennis.

At haiku, rugby, cookery, philosophy, fine art

A polymath, a raconteur, a bon viveur apart

Whose wit and charm and modesty is a wonder to behold

And all who fall beneath his thrall, their worlds are wreathed in gold.  

And then they had Stephanie.

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So now, their little world complete, they forged ahead anew

With holidays to Cromer, Scunthorpe, Sevenoaks and Crewe,

And as the kids got older they ventured back to Malta

In conversation, a nice location, 

But never drink the water.

 

So in Northampton, born and bred, the Ciappara children grew

And Jo and Grace, embraced the place, and raised their little crew.

Grace honed her skills and got her thrills in amateur dramatics

And soon she stunned all-comers with her kitchen acrobatics

Cooking on the radio, answering callers’ queries,

Solving culinary problems for Northampton’s blue rinse dearies.

She joined the Masque, she crept the boards, she set the stage alight

She sang, she danced, soliloquyed non-stop into the night.

And Shakespeare in the Park! She even roped me in

Henry V, The Merry Wives, I took it on the chin.

 

So with a quiet cough, my Dad slunk off 

Went down the County Ground, 

To watch a local football team by the name of Northampton Town

True to form, my father quietly put his face about,

And soon they realised his worth, a find, without a doubt.

They sat him down, at Northampton Town and offered him a malt,

And said ‘Listen Doc, this team’s a crock, it’s seriously at fault!

Our players keep falling over, they haven’t got a clue!

Can you come along and join us, we need a man like you,’

And so Joe stayed on, for 40 years, drinking all their whisky

Rolling home on a Saturday night, red faced and slightly frisky.

 

So Joe and Grace, have found their place, and truly settled down,

Their roots are firmly planted in good old Northampton Town,

And many a party this house has seen and weddings too, remember,

Though most of them for Astrid, with another one this November!

 

So 50 years have passed and Joe and Grace are still as one.

Its been a roller coaster and a huge amount of fun

To have grown up as their daughters, to have grown up as their son.

So please join me in a toast right now, to Joe and Grace’s marriage

Anniversary mugs and merchandise are available in the garage.

 

Cheers, down the hatch!