Champeen of the World

Growing up,

I was in an interesting spot.

Everyone had godfathers,

But only one of them

Was a bona fide rock star.

And he was mine.

There was no better news

Than hearing he would be visiting 

Or that we would head over

To New Jersey (which, for that reason,

Never acquired that negative connotation 

That others have for it),

Right across from the City of Brotherly Love.

It was, in fact,

My godfather

And his relationship 

With my mother

That did so much

To encourage 

The enduring bond

I share 

With my sister.

And his family

And my family

Mesh so well together

In general.

Growing up with that, 

Regardless of anything else,

I always felt that something 

Was going right.

Family is family

But no more, in my experience,

Than his and mine.

The guru of gadgets,

The maharaja of machines,

The caretaker of cars everywhere,

The biggest personality in any room,

The legitimate king of thumb wars...

So he’s now and forever

Champeen of the world.

And somewhere 

He’s suddenly thinking

Of “Louie Louie,”

Because that’s who he is,

The uncle who will always remember,

And will long endure in memory.

And hopefully,

In the rest of the world,

Many more years to come.