Remember That Day

The following is an exception for this journal in that it was not written by me, but it is about me so I thought that I would share it. This poem speaks for itself and I thank its authors for their kind words.

If You Can Remember That Day Six Months Ago

It was a cold day in January 2008
When we called you for advice
You said you’d be there if we needed your help
Because to own a bakery would be nice

From day one you jumped in and were never weary
So we all took your cue and were totally cheery
You hammered us with “herewiths”- we still felt upbeat
So now it was time for everyone to meet

We gathered at your office, Mike the lawyer was late
He approached with zero info and a cocky gate
His façade was scruffy, did he come in from town?
Apparently not, because his fly was down!

The case was soon hoppin’ – emails night and day
Always disputing what the other would say
Ron explained legalese to us very well
But we still don’t know – what’s ESTOPPEL?

There were so many terms – what DID they all mean?
Holdbacks, waivers, executions and lien
The lawyers spoke in tongue what did we expect
Sorry, let me preface that “WITH ALL DUE RESPECT”

With tempers flaring and cheeriness diminishing
And so much to sort – we only thought about finishing
There were brand new issues at the start of each day
Hundreds of emails, so needless to say - that

April came and Mike split the scene
Was it better or worse when along came Dean
Not to be outdone by this cowardly deserter
Ron brought out the big gun, his attorney Roberta

Although her persona you could not rattle
Could she handle this continuing battle?
The arguing and bickering simply did not rock her
Up against Dean she was still a sweet talker

The countless hours Ron worked were beyond belief
But with the help of Roberta he got SOME relief
Yet while on vacation – from his cell on the pike
We conferenced for hours… including the loser Mike

The non-compete was finally settled, we could now move ahead
We wouldn’t sell corned beef and they wouldn’t bake bread
And the problem presenting the utmost fear
Was sealed minutes before the closing when the tax lien DID clear

It was amazing to observe different lawyering techniques
What could have taken days took so many weeks
But we are grateful for this because watching Ron the Pro
We gained so much insight to lots we didn’t know

So Ron, our dear friend, we don’t know what to say
That when the deal was closed on the 5th of May
We may have felt relief, delight and pleasure
But of much more significance, a friendship to treasure

You can work on Sundays with Challah for life
And what’s a Thursday without your wife
One day we’ll pay this forward to someone in need
With love & thanks from our hearts we’ll take your lead

Love, Karen & Richard