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Ambitious, fun, funky chic - My pen name is J-Rap. Let's have fun. Listen to the words and be carried away. I Got my inspiration …
Hannah. It means graceful and calm, like a dancers swift precise movements. She stays firmly planted in the pre-determined lines. She is obedient and kind, …
I like to write words and music.
Poems
James Bradley McCallum Nov 2014
Classmates
James Bradley McCallum
Nov 2014
tonight we gather
to mark a
commencement day
four decades on
from a late June
afternoon
exchanging
embraces and
bon voyage wishes
departing a grand
chandeliered Rivoli
embarcadero
bound
to glorious
destinations
our bold sails
welling with
youthful
exuberance
in pursuit of
dreams
and intrepid
endeavors
our life
journeys
are blessed
with rich
abundance,
the grace of
challenge and
the gift of days
this evening
as we reconnect
to share the joys
and wisdom gleaned
from well lived lives
we will also celebrate
in multicolored splendor
the lives of classmates
who have commenced
journeys to other
destinations
though their
earthly sojourn
is complete
passed friends
remain alive
in our memory
surely the spirits
of the beloved
will walk this
room tonight
forever young
their quiet presence
will gently touch
tender hearts
they’ll appear
as they once looked
on their finest day
and as we relive
the bits of our lives
we shared with
one another
we may feel
the grasp of a
warm hand
as we once did
during that
snowy evening
west end walk
we’ll dance with them again
around Tamblyn Field bonfires
gyrating in a shared
ecstatic ebullience
we’ll applaud most likely
to succeed lives
most beautiful smiles
and crack up
to the hilarity of
class clown jokes
we’ll taste the kiss
of an after dark
Lincoln Park
rendezvous
groove to the
rock steady
beat of a
bad company tune
we’ll submerge again
in a Yellow Submarine
to embark on an epic
Greenwich Village
journey
we’ll roll down
the shore on old
Thunder Road
windows open
hair blowin
radio blastin
we’ll taste the sweet sip
of Cherry Cokes
and Root Beer floats
at Roadrunners
chasing lost love salty tears
spilled over ***** upperclass home boys
and the soft blush sentiment of a
first French kiss
wouldn't it be nice
to swoon to the
fantasy and
winsome yearnings
of favorite
summer songs
filling our head’s
with mind
blowing collages
starring
team mates
drama club
second takes
heady chess club
checkmates
we’ll marvel at the disruption of
premillennial breakthrough science projects
created by pocket protected slide ruling
entrepreneurial math wizards
we'll recall droll gossip
by drab hall lockers
dim gym showers
awkward dances
Yippie people power
patriotic assemblies
cool sharp dressers
right on brother
Que Pasa lil sista
rock and roll album covers
Simon and Garfunkel poetics
Go Go Boots kickin
FM radio psychedelics
Midnight Confessions
emphatically blared
from the cafeteria jukebox
Civil Rights, Earth Day
and righteous
anti war activism
tribes of hoods, Ra’s,
jocks, artistes and tie dye hippies
everything is groovy
lets get a sandwich at Ernie’s
first carnal explorations
Moody Blue Tuesday trysts
man could she speak German
boy do I dig her dress
we did hard time together
at split session detention centers
ate chocolate chip cookies
cracked up to Mr. Thomas’s
Ides of March tragedy
took first tokes and
sips of Boones Farm
we partied hard
and did no harm
admired academic brainiacs
and the civic commitment
of student govie reps
shut down the gubmint
was never a threat
basketball rumbles
Bulldog football
**** Ludwig soccer teams
nimble cheerleaders
leggy majorettes
kick *** marching band fanfares
compelling masquer presentments
Park Avenue wayfarers
they were
crew mates
on The Soul Boat
rode shotgun
to Midnight Rambler
Doobie Concerts
cruised hard in
the Root Hog
Rat Raced Louie
in tiny white Pintos
we booked
many a mile
with our lost
friends
on the road to
this evening
authoring
volumes of
fabled odysseys
and fantastic
recollections
their stories
are our stories
telling our stories
keeps them alive
some may say
gone too soon
but the measure of
a well lived life
is not counted
in days, nor
accomplishments
but how one has loved
and how much one was loved
quietly there
always with us
forever to be
a wholesome
part of us
as the brothers
from Cooley High
would say
lets tip a sip
for the brothers
and sisters who
ain’t here….
God bless
Godspeed
enjoy the evening
vaya con dios mis amigos
Music Selection:
Pat Metheny
Mas Alla
RHS 74
Class Reunion
Elks Club
Rutherford
11/29/14
to mark a
commencement day
four decades on
from a late June
afternoon
exchanging
embraces and
bon voyage wishes
departing a grand
chandeliered Rivoli
embarcadero
bound
to glorious
destinations
our bold sails
welling with
youthful
exuberance
in pursuit of
dreams
and intrepid
endeavors
our life
journeys
are blessed
with rich
abundance,
the grace of
challenge and
the gift of days
this evening
as we reconnect
to share the joys
and wisdom gleaned
from well lived lives
we will also celebrate
in multicolored splendor
the lives of classmates
who have commenced
journeys to other
destinations
though their
earthly sojourn
is complete
passed friends
remain alive
in our memory
surely the spirits
of the beloved
will walk this
room tonight
forever young
their quiet presence
will gently touch
tender hearts
they’ll appear
as they once looked
on their finest day
and as we relive
the bits of our lives
we shared with
one another
we may feel
the grasp of a
warm hand
as we once did
during that
snowy evening
west end walk
we’ll dance with them again
around Tamblyn Field bonfires
gyrating in a shared
ecstatic ebullience
we’ll applaud most likely
to succeed lives
most beautiful smiles
and crack up
to the hilarity of
class clown jokes
we’ll taste the kiss
of an after dark
Lincoln Park
rendezvous
groove to the
rock steady
beat of a
bad company tune
we’ll submerge again
in a Yellow Submarine
to embark on an epic
Greenwich Village
journey
we’ll roll down
the shore on old
Thunder Road
windows open
hair blowin
radio blastin
we’ll taste the sweet sip
of Cherry Cokes
and Root Beer floats
at Roadrunners
chasing lost love salty tears
spilled over ***** upperclass home boys
and the soft blush sentiment of a
first French kiss
wouldn't it be nice
to swoon to the
fantasy and
winsome yearnings
of favorite
summer songs
filling our head’s
with mind
blowing collages
starring
team mates
drama club
second takes
heady chess club
checkmates
we’ll marvel at the disruption of
premillennial breakthrough science projects
created by pocket protected slide ruling
entrepreneurial math wizards
we'll recall droll gossip
by drab hall lockers
dim gym showers
awkward dances
Yippie people power
patriotic assemblies
cool sharp dressers
right on brother
Que Pasa lil sista
rock and roll album covers
Simon and Garfunkel poetics
Go Go Boots kickin
FM radio psychedelics
Midnight Confessions
emphatically blared
from the cafeteria jukebox
Civil Rights, Earth Day
and righteous
anti war activism
tribes of hoods, Ra’s,
jocks, artistes and tie dye hippies
everything is groovy
lets get a sandwich at Ernie’s
first carnal explorations
Moody Blue Tuesday trysts
man could she speak German
boy do I dig her dress
we did hard time together
at split session detention centers
ate chocolate chip cookies
cracked up to Mr. Thomas’s
Ides of March tragedy
took first tokes and
sips of Boones Farm
we partied hard
and did no harm
admired academic brainiacs
and the civic commitment
of student govie reps
shut down the gubmint
was never a threat
basketball rumbles
Bulldog football
**** Ludwig soccer teams
nimble cheerleaders
leggy majorettes
kick *** marching band fanfares
compelling masquer presentments
Park Avenue wayfarers
they were
crew mates
on The Soul Boat
rode shotgun
to Midnight Rambler
Doobie Concerts
cruised hard in
the Root Hog
Rat Raced Louie
in tiny white Pintos
we booked
many a mile
with our lost
friends
on the road to
this evening
authoring
volumes of
fabled odysseys
and fantastic
recollections
their stories
are our stories
telling our stories
keeps them alive
some may say
gone too soon
but the measure of
a well lived life
is not counted
in days, nor
accomplishments
but how one has loved
and how much one was loved
quietly there
always with us
forever to be
a wholesome
part of us
as the brothers
from Cooley High
would say
lets tip a sip
for the brothers
and sisters who
ain’t here….
God bless
Godspeed
enjoy the evening
vaya con dios mis amigos
Music Selection:
Pat Metheny
Mas Alla
RHS 74
Class Reunion
Elks Club
Rutherford
11/29/14
James Bradley McCallum Aug 2018
Valiant Bulldog
James Bradley McCallum
Aug 2018
We were teammates
We suited up
We showed up
We weren't stars
But we rolled in the dirt
With the best of them
Our blood ran red
Like the rest of them
Our sweat tasted salty
As the most athletic of them
Wounds and bruises
Ached like the most
Stalwart of them
We were Bulldogs!
We anted up our
Gifts and talents to
Forge a winning season
A flair for humor
Wry observation,
Encouragement, fortitude
And intelligence were as
Valuable as speed,
Agility and strength
We all pined for the
Affection of cheerleaders,
Bandmembers and the
Adoration of fans
We equally joined
In the chorus of
locker room banter
And honored the
Confidence of camaraderie
Such intimacy bares
We endured thankless
Adversity, while wending
through anonymous toil
As brothers
We grudgingly drank
From the vile cup of defeat
And passed the chalice
Of victory among us
To share the savory
Taste of triumph
As champions
The Duke of Wellington
Said “the battle of Waterloo
Was won on the fields of Eton”
I trust my teammates and
Not forgotten friends
Tasted sweet victories of
Happiness and success
As they coursed through
Their prodigious fields of life
And at games end
I hope their heart swelled
With pride to know they were
A beloved and Valiant Bulldog
David Irving Korsh #75
BCSL Champion 1973
Rutherford Bulldogs
Well done Valiant Bulldog
God bless and Godspeed
Music Selection:
Bruce Springsteen
Thunder Road
5/5/18
Puyallup
jbm
We suited up
We showed up
We weren't stars
But we rolled in the dirt
With the best of them
Our blood ran red
Like the rest of them
Our sweat tasted salty
As the most athletic of them
Wounds and bruises
Ached like the most
Stalwart of them
We were Bulldogs!
We anted up our
Gifts and talents to
Forge a winning season
A flair for humor
Wry observation,
Encouragement, fortitude
And intelligence were as
Valuable as speed,
Agility and strength
We all pined for the
Affection of cheerleaders,
Bandmembers and the
Adoration of fans
We equally joined
In the chorus of
locker room banter
And honored the
Confidence of camaraderie
Such intimacy bares
We endured thankless
Adversity, while wending
through anonymous toil
As brothers
We grudgingly drank
From the vile cup of defeat
And passed the chalice
Of victory among us
To share the savory
Taste of triumph
As champions
The Duke of Wellington
Said “the battle of Waterloo
Was won on the fields of Eton”
I trust my teammates and
Not forgotten friends
Tasted sweet victories of
Happiness and success
As they coursed through
Their prodigious fields of life
And at games end
I hope their heart swelled
With pride to know they were
A beloved and Valiant Bulldog
David Irving Korsh #75
BCSL Champion 1973
Rutherford Bulldogs
Well done Valiant Bulldog
God bless and Godspeed
Music Selection:
Bruce Springsteen
Thunder Road
5/5/18
Puyallup
jbm
the passing of a former teammate
James Bradley McCallum Nov 2015
Remembrance Game
James Bradley McCallum
Nov 2015
stirred deeply with joy
enthralled with the spirit
we return to Elysian fields
to live autumnal reveries
we prance once more
onto blue sky diamonds
with hometown heroes
to pitch perfect games
knock long grand slams
to honor and embrace
the semblance of siblings,
parents, lovers and friends
life's teammates
our dearest playmates
passed and still here
sustaining our spirit
filling the void of
riven hearts
with nothing more than
a smiling presence,
compliant ear
a warm embrace
keeping a
season of sunshine
alive for one more
golden day
in a resplendent moment
Measy’s youngest son
stood before me
as if it were him
five decades ago
his impish smile,
mischievous eye
and olive skin
wrinkled when
he grinned
your Old Man
was a hell
of a ball player
a great hitter
he always swung down
at the pitch, hitting
nasty line drives
I remember that
summer afternoon
when we first met on
the Washington School
Merry-Go-Round...
Measy just up
from Carolina
he spoke with
a slow Tar Heel drawl
we didn't know what
to make of him
so we made him
our friend
Sifford's Esso, B&D;
and Bulldog teammates
I marveled at his athleticism
but the thing I remember
most was the soft joviality of...
“ ah hoot,
ah hoot.
ah hoot”
his laugh would send
a soft almost *******
shudder through his body
Measy lives in me,
forever in my heart
I embraced young Roy
touched his cheek
a transcendent moment
that spans a half century
At first base
Gail “Peppermint Patty” Q
was scooping up grounders
and not letting anyone past her
without giving them a smile or a hug….
asking each player if their shirt fit right…
the way Gail played
she could start for
the Lady Gaels today...
on the mound
Moons was wearing
a Schmeds shirt
lobbing lollipops to the hitters…..
making sure everyone got on base…
at short Screwball
covering half the ground
he once did..
(never a ss but a classic junk baller,
never threw a pitch that you could hit)
but on this day his heart was filled
overflowing with the karma
of good works and his love for
Rutherford and its favorite
sons and daughters
who have gone on before….
other stars abounded on the field and off…
Noons cracked everyone up
with an endless stand-up routine
Skip walloped a few dingers
BL looked sharp in his Foster Grants
and Andy was looking good
destined for the next cover of GQ….
Coach Way gave a resounding pep talk…
the need to grow up and show up
with an attitude of gratitude will
always make one a winner
regardless of the score
in the stands I heard a hundred stories
about the prowess and foibles of departed friends…
Bay Bay’s HR smash that put Flash Cleaners
into the World Series
A cool Moose bringing the ball across
half court, driving and dumping one off to Head
for the go ahead points against Queen of Peace
Minnow ruling a territory that included Morse Ave,
Wood Street up to Chopper’s House and
half of the Washington School playground
Fic being the smallest Bulldog with the largest heart
ran over linebackers and tackled fullbacks twice his size
Weehawken Joe draining a jumper
from the top of the key to keep it close
at the Union Hill pit…
as the list of the departed was read by Gail, Pat, John and Jimmy
the depth of our loss was only exceeded by the magnitude of love
a caring community extends to one another….
Rutherford is indeed a very special place….
so many caring friends
so many good thoughts
the blessing of friendship
the grace of presence
as I turned to leave
I thought I saw
Nick and Joe
hanging with
Sweet Lou
the hog was
humming
his red bandanna
was flapping
in a rising breeze
Aaron Copland:
Our Town
Righteous Brothers
Unchained Melody
Whitney Houston:
I Will Always Love You
Oakland
Dia De Muertos
2015
Thank you Pat Francke, Jimmy Noonan, Gail Wilhelm Quinn and John Mooney for putting this beautiful event together….
My apologies for not mentioning all the beloved souls so honored at this game…..Know that all are deeply loved and equally missed…..
If anyone has a memory they would like included please add in comments section and it will be incorporated in future versions…..
Also if anyone has a list of the names would like to add that to this….
God Bless
enthralled with the spirit
we return to Elysian fields
to live autumnal reveries
we prance once more
onto blue sky diamonds
with hometown heroes
to pitch perfect games
knock long grand slams
to honor and embrace
the semblance of siblings,
parents, lovers and friends
life's teammates
our dearest playmates
passed and still here
sustaining our spirit
filling the void of
riven hearts
with nothing more than
a smiling presence,
compliant ear
a warm embrace
keeping a
season of sunshine
alive for one more
golden day
in a resplendent moment
Measy’s youngest son
stood before me
as if it were him
five decades ago
his impish smile,
mischievous eye
and olive skin
wrinkled when
he grinned
your Old Man
was a hell
of a ball player
a great hitter
he always swung down
at the pitch, hitting
nasty line drives
I remember that
summer afternoon
when we first met on
the Washington School
Merry-Go-Round...
Measy just up
from Carolina
he spoke with
a slow Tar Heel drawl
we didn't know what
to make of him
so we made him
our friend
Sifford's Esso, B&D;
and Bulldog teammates
I marveled at his athleticism
but the thing I remember
most was the soft joviality of...
“ ah hoot,
ah hoot.
ah hoot”
his laugh would send
a soft almost *******
shudder through his body
Measy lives in me,
forever in my heart
I embraced young Roy
touched his cheek
a transcendent moment
that spans a half century
At first base
Gail “Peppermint Patty” Q
was scooping up grounders
and not letting anyone past her
without giving them a smile or a hug….
asking each player if their shirt fit right…
the way Gail played
she could start for
the Lady Gaels today...
on the mound
Moons was wearing
a Schmeds shirt
lobbing lollipops to the hitters…..
making sure everyone got on base…
at short Screwball
covering half the ground
he once did..
(never a ss but a classic junk baller,
never threw a pitch that you could hit)
but on this day his heart was filled
overflowing with the karma
of good works and his love for
Rutherford and its favorite
sons and daughters
who have gone on before….
other stars abounded on the field and off…
Noons cracked everyone up
with an endless stand-up routine
Skip walloped a few dingers
BL looked sharp in his Foster Grants
and Andy was looking good
destined for the next cover of GQ….
Coach Way gave a resounding pep talk…
the need to grow up and show up
with an attitude of gratitude will
always make one a winner
regardless of the score
in the stands I heard a hundred stories
about the prowess and foibles of departed friends…
Bay Bay’s HR smash that put Flash Cleaners
into the World Series
A cool Moose bringing the ball across
half court, driving and dumping one off to Head
for the go ahead points against Queen of Peace
Minnow ruling a territory that included Morse Ave,
Wood Street up to Chopper’s House and
half of the Washington School playground
Fic being the smallest Bulldog with the largest heart
ran over linebackers and tackled fullbacks twice his size
Weehawken Joe draining a jumper
from the top of the key to keep it close
at the Union Hill pit…
as the list of the departed was read by Gail, Pat, John and Jimmy
the depth of our loss was only exceeded by the magnitude of love
a caring community extends to one another….
Rutherford is indeed a very special place….
so many caring friends
so many good thoughts
the blessing of friendship
the grace of presence
as I turned to leave
I thought I saw
Nick and Joe
hanging with
Sweet Lou
the hog was
humming
his red bandanna
was flapping
in a rising breeze
Aaron Copland:
Our Town
Righteous Brothers
Unchained Melody
Whitney Houston:
I Will Always Love You
Oakland
Dia De Muertos
2015
Thank you Pat Francke, Jimmy Noonan, Gail Wilhelm Quinn and John Mooney for putting this beautiful event together….
My apologies for not mentioning all the beloved souls so honored at this game…..Know that all are deeply loved and equally missed…..
If anyone has a memory they would like included please add in comments section and it will be incorporated in future versions…..
Also if anyone has a list of the names would like to add that to this….
God Bless
an annual autumn softball game played in my hometown Rutherford NJ...
we gather to honor and remember passed loved ones......
we gather to honor and remember passed loved ones......