A Beginner's Lament
Today you get it then tomorrow you don’t Just when you’ve found the Holy Grail You lose it again The game of your life is followed by the worst of them all It’s a gentleman’s game but your patience must be a saint’s Two steps forward, one step backward Then two more back, before a single one front Surely it must be easier To train a dog how to sing Than your muscles to swing The ball is too small and the hole is too small And what makes you think you can sink it From a quarter mile even with a roll? Not with a stick with a head that miniscule Sometimes you wonder why you picked it up at all The view is so wonderful if you can just look around But most of the time your head is on the ground The splash of water is a sound that you dread And the wind on your face Is not a good sign indeed Most of the time you'll frolic in the sand But no, not this time, you’ll avoid it if you can Sure you'll never see a sight lovely as a tree But not if it blocks Your next shot from the tee But on