Other Art Davis Posts

It is my privilege to know Art Davis, the "Ogden Nash of Port Charlotte."

Art has given his permission over the last couple years for me to publish some of his poems. Most of the ones I've posted do not demonstrate his gift of turning words into hilarious twists. I hope he succeeds in gathering his body of work into something that can be published and shared far more widely than my little blog.

But Art's gifts also extend to twists of phrases which leave me breathless because of what words he connects to describe what he sees and feels. He does it in all his poems, the humorous ones and the serious ones.

Here is a list of the dates I posted his poems so that you can go back and enjoy/be moved by his work:

May 24, 2007
August 27, 2007
November 4, 2007
July 13, 2008
April 28, 2009

Art Davis poem - By My Beard . . .

Mr. Davis is a good church member, a dedicated Christian who has not only given much time, resources, and skill to the churches of which has been been a part both up north and here in Port Charlotte, but he has lent his "bum" to more sermons than you. So he is aware of Scripture passages like, "You will know the false prophets by what they do" (Mt. 7:20) and songs like, "You will know we are Christians by our love," (folk hymn from the 1970s).

His fertile mind plays with phrases like that and he comes up with the some wonderful stuff:

By My Beard You Shall Know Me

Oh hear me, Muse,
I do implore.
Prevent my penning
Words that bore.

In searching through
My poetry books,
I found a sim-
Iliarity of looks.

Longfellow, Whitman,
Elliott, and Keats,
All giants of
poetic feats,

I realized,
You'll think it weird,
Those titans each,
I found with beard.

The question broached
Is not too hard.
Without a beard,
Can one be a bard?

Once I'm bearded,
I'll overnight
Then take my place,
Midst those classed erudite?

I label writing
Rather hard,
For I could end
With beard, and yet
Still not be a bard. . .


Arthur H. Davis
4/11/07
Copyright
6/12/07
Posted by permission of the author