An Ode to the Lemon

There are three things that make life worth living

And lemons are ranked number two 

The mere thought of a lemon makes me salivate 
And I'm sure that that's true for you too

When I was a kid in Menominee

Our dairy was right down the street 

A double dip cone cost a full five cents
I'd say Lemon Flake couldn't be beat

The bottling plant was on Ogden Ave.

They had seventeen flavors of pop 

Lemon Fizz was their number one seller
After school we would stop at that shop

Each evening my mother cooked dinner 

Her whitefish was something to savor

She added paprika and almonds

But lemon juice brought out the flavor

On Sundays she'd fix us a scrumptious dessert

A pie made with lemon meringue
A slice of that pie was a work of art
Filled through with the tartest of tang

When we children got desperate for money

We’d set up a lemonade stand

We charged a nickel for a  six-ounce cup

Our customers said, “It's so grand!” 

My wife orders lemon in her water

Though I like my lemon with gin 

The lemon cuts the flavor of the alcohol

Three shots and that lemon makes me grin

When spring arrives with its allergies

I stock up on lemon drops

The druggist said lemon’s the very best cure

That's so true  — my runny nose stops

Lemon pudding, lemon gum, lemon milkshakes
Lemon juice will preserve a cantaloupe
The British put lemon in their pancakes
You can even get lemon in soap

Lemons freshen your sink or disposal
Young girls put the juice in their hair
A few droplets at the doorway keep the ants away
You can use it to scrub copperware

Sohat would life be if there were no lemons?

I imagine we’d somehow survive

But lacking that delicious yellowish fruit

There’s no chance that we humans would thrive