Ode To Rod Mckuen Poem by Juan Olivarez

A child of the sixties, wild and free,
And Rod McKuen, meant the world to me.
I grew up with Creedence, and a band named Bread,
The Vietnam war, always in my head.

And there was Rod, on a California beach,
Just laying in the sun, just a wise old man.
With his poetry the world he would reach,
As I quoted him in class, I felt so grand.

Rod McKuen was our guru, he was everywhere,
Always deep, sometimes funny,
No one could come close, no one could compare,
He even made the Tonight Show with Johnny.

Rod spoke of life, and the meaning there of,
Of what was important to all.
He was like a gift sent from above,
And it seems that everybody heeded his call.

I read Rod McKuen because of his style,
He was different than everyone else.
He seemed a grown man, with the mind of a child,
I was really under his spell.

I read Seasons In The Sun again and again,
I could never get enough.
I read Rod In the sun and rain,
I just thrived on his stuff.

Rod was a dreamer, and I guess he still is,
And his dreams are golden still.
Reading his art I feel full of bliss,
And I guess I always will.

Rod was so different, and he never really cared,
Nobody told him what to say.
He was the one who really dared,
I hope he's still that way.

I still read Rod McKuen every chance I get,
Though now he's so different from me.
I guess in my own ways I am now set,
But Rod McKuen helped set me free.

I would say more But somehow I feel,
This ode is getting somewhat long.
Just know Rod McKuen was the real deal,
In poetry, words and songs.

3/18/11 Alton Texas