Advice to my Nephew, Stevie, on his fifth birthday

Whenever you go dinosaurin',

At school, at home or someplace foreign.

The important thing is to select

The mighty lizard most correct

To roar and gnash in just the way you're feeling.

When locked behind your bedroom door,

Consider the great allosaur-

A giant mouth with giant tail,

Chomping leaves along the trail

And banging your head on the (forest) ceiling.

And when you're feeling wild and fleet,

The pterodactyl's pretty sweet

Hunting, tackling, and tearing clothes

Goes well with friends and knives for toes.

On the playground, none are more appealing.

But then there's days of youth or age

When nothing can contain our rage.

A mighty predator is due

And that T-Rex must now be you,

Tearing flesh at liberty

Scaring prey right up a tree-

A gnashing, thrashing, thick-skulled daemon

To pursue, subdue and chew on Eamon.

DINOSAUR, n. coll. A lumbering, unadaptable relic, such as an uncle.

Happy birthday, Stevie