I opened the closet door today and to my great delight

The ancestors fell out one by one, some a little contrite.

But most were full of wit and wisdom as they stood themselves in line

There was no doubt about my heritage – some old salts did love their brine.

There were some that sat quite thoughtfully taking in the scene around

And when it came their time to speak their wisdom did confound.

As I sorted through the muddle of their ancient Gaelic tongues

I noted very carefully the different rhythms of the drums.

There were some that marked a lively beat

There were some that slowly marched

There were some that dressed quite heavenly

And some with collars starched.

There were some that worked the factories

And some that worked the streets

There were some that sailed the oceans

As for kingdoms they did compete.

Their tales were quite fantastic and as their stories came to life,

They rattled their bones in unison when as their descendant I got it right.

Was I to be the family historian to solve the mysteries of the past

Or was I just simply at the end of the line to grab whatever branch I could grasp.

I shinnied up and down the tree – there was no branch to spare

And so became a social butterfly just to give each branch some flair.

I embellished each as best I could and each gave their best to me

Oh my, it can be wondrous what one finds in the family tree.