Lester's Quest

Lester had a quest for knowledge
   Couldn’t wait to go to college
At the tender age of three
   He mastered trigonometry.
While other kids read Dr. Seuss
   And prattled verse from Mother Goose
He finished reading War and Peace
   And mastered playing Für Elise
Young Lester soon spoke Japanese
   As well as French and Portuguese
His parents couldn’t hide their pride
   When Lester found he qualified
For Mensa’s IQ based society
   That brought him fame and notoriety
It wasn’t long before every book
   Had been downloaded to Lester’s Nook
He read and committed to memory
   The Iliad and the Odyssey
And all of this before turning five
   Would Lester ever have to strive?
At six he entered Harvard Law
   It wasn’t even hard at all
With so much knowledge in Lester’s brain
   It soon left no more to attain
And though for jobs he did apply
   An eight year old just didn’t fly
So Lester defeated and discontent
   Penned a letter to the President
And asked him for a face to face
   In the oval office or another place
Then Lester waited for his reply
   And passed the time reciting pi
One morning gazing toward the sky
   He noticed something way up high
Perhaps he thought a bird or plane
   With squinted eyes he peered again
And used his hand to block the sun
   That’s when he saw it, Air Force One
It hovered for a little while
   Then landed; that’s when Lester smiled
The blades stopped whirring and it was parked
   And soon the President disembarked
“Young man, you’re Lester, I suppose.”
   (He struck a Presidential pose)
And when young Lester didn’t speak
   The President kindly pinched his cheek
And said, “I think we need to talk.
   The two of us should take a walk.
I’ve heard of your accomplishments.
   It seems you have a lot of sense.
And though you seem to know it all,
   I wonder, have you tossed a ball?
Or made a castle in the sand?
   Caught a butterfly in your hand?
Played German Spotlight on a summer night?
   Or even tried to fly a kite?
If not, it’s time to be a kid
   And if you do, you’ll be glad you did.
Slow down and let yourself enjoy
   The fun of being a little boy.”
The chopper blades began to whir
   And Lester hollered, “Thank you, Sir.”
       *    *    *    *    *
You want to know what Lester’s doing?
   Today, I think he’s off canoeing
He likes to run and play outdoors
   And like most kids, hates doing chores
And though he still has all his talents
   He’s happier now, ‘cause his life . . . is balanced.