Writing Your Own GRAND Verse

BY ARLENE HARDER, MA, MFT

Discover how easy it is to write verse for home-made cards that send humor and inspiration to friends who need a lift.

Part Three of Three Parts

If you want to send GRAND greeting cards frequently, you'll want to write something on the inside of them besides just "Get well" and "I'm thinking of you" — although those sentiments are perfectly fine. It's just that you'll probably want to have some variety. And brother, is there ever variety! To show you what I mean, this page will give you lots of ideas to get your creative juices flowing.

Quotations, Jokes, and Articles

As long as you give credit to the author, I see no reason why you can't use someone else's material. In my GRAND cards I would often copy a poem. Other times I would use a quotation that challenged and a joke that cheered. The Reader's Digest was a source for numerous short, humorous stories, most of which I simply cut out. Other times I would photocopy an interesting article and send that without a card, just writing at the top something like, "Thought you'd enjoy this." Often I'd suggest my friend take a stress-reduction break. (Many of these became Take-a-Breaks.)

Use Old Greeting Cards to Suggest a Verse

Remember when I suggested you might want to buy a greeting card, or at least look at ones in the store? That's because you can get lots of ideas that you can expand upon. And I wouldn't worry about being original. As the saying goes, there are few completely original ideas. All of us in the writing business build upon the works of others. We may give old sayings a new twist, but basically we're taking ideas just a small step beyond where someone else has gone.

To illustrate this point, the following are slight changes I've made to verses on cards I've received and you are welcome to use them or change the wording even more to fit your own needs. (Words before the three dots were on the front of the cards and words after them were on the inside. Usually I've changed both parts of the verse.)

When things get you w-a-y d-o-w-n . . . just remember that I care a L-O-T.

This card contains a hug . . . you can give it back anytime you want to.

I don't know what I'd do without a friend like you . . . but chances are I wouldn't enjoy life half as much. Wanted to send you something to could help you feel better after your treatment . . . but how do you mail a hug? Feel better soon.

Be careful opening this card . . . there's a hug folded in the middle.

Recently I saw a card with a question on the outside that asked, "Know what five things I'm grateful for?" and then answered on the inside with:

1. You

2. You

3. You

4. The fact you can't hear bugs scream when they hit your windshield.

5. You

This got me to thinking of what one might put in the place of that number four. What are you thankful for, besides your friend?

I think it's perfectly okay to change words slightly or copy the exact words on a card. Greeting card companies aren't going to go out of business because you make a few GRAND cards. I certainly buy cards. It's just that sometimes when you really care enough to send the very best, you make your own.

Greetings Based on the Picture Inside

Mostly, I wrote my own verses. You can, too. Coming up with original stuff isn't as hard as you may think. Just let the picture on the outside give you an idea for the inside greeting. Let your imagination go wild. Your friend or family member will love it.

To show you what I mean, the examples below were some I used, or plan to use. They may not win a prize in the most brilliant department and some are downright corny, but they do the trick. Please feel free to copy anything you like. This is one case in which plagiarism is quite permissible. Of course, you can easily change these to fit the individual who is getting them. What you would say to someone who has faith in God may be quite different from your greeting to a skeptic or atheist.

Picture: Chimpanzee

Verse: "Don't monkey around. Get swinging again."

Picture: A sweet little girl with freckles

Verse: "Here's a bonnie lass come to let ya know I'm thinkin' of ya."

Picture: Two brightly colored leaves have fallen off the tree and been caught between two thin branches

Verse: Don't get stuck. Shake yourself loose and get out of there.

Picture: Mountains (I have LOTS of pictures of mountains because every year I get at least one Sierra Club calendar)

Verse: I know that to get through treatment you have to be a lot like a mountain climber. The way may not be easy, but step by step you're gradually getting closer to the summit. And the higher you get, the greater the view. And even if a helicopter could have taken you to the top in one day, you wouldn't know the mountain nearly as well.

Picture: Walrus

Verse: Sometimes you have to have a very tough hide to not let this thing get you down.

Picture: A flower on which I have pasted a bandage

Verse: Even though you may have some cuts you didn't have before, your beauty still shines through.

Picture: Roseate spoonbill, a beautiful, large pink bird with strong, wide wings, soaring in the air

Verse: I've watched you beat your wings so hard I hardly thought you'd get air-born. But here you are, soaring through treatment. Happy landing.

Picture: Front face view of bald eagle in Denali National Park, Alaska, with wide open beak and a fierce scowl on his face, as if saying "Don't mess with me. I'm king."

Verse: Way to go, friend. Don't let those doctors push you around.

Picture: Four caribou fording a river in Denali National Park, Alaska

Verse: Did you know I care-a-bout you?

Picture: A moon high above the mountains in Kings Canyon National Park

Verse: May you see many moons on your climb to the top.

Picture: A solitary granite boulder in Joshua Tree National Monument

Verse: I know it feels like you've been pushing a rock uphill for a very long time, but I think you're almost there.

Picture: Skeleton juniper and a setting moon over the stark landscape of Navajo Sandstone Hill in Arizona

Verse: Just as some places are barren yet strikingly beautiful because they stand in contrast to lush green hills, the days when things seem dark and depressing point to give meaning to days when things are better.

Picture: A dairy cow

Verse: I want you to get better. And that's no bull.

Picture: A beautiful landscape

Verse: Save the earth! It's the only planet with chocolate.

Picture: Kites

Verse: Sorry to hear you've been under the weather. Hope you're up and flying again soon. Want more GRAND ideas? Look for future articles.

There are no limits to the things you can give fairly easily — and inexpensively — in the GRAND tradition. Remember, that stands for "Gifts Recycled And Numerous Delights," so if you don't have a gift that can be used again, keep your eyes out for the many, many things that can delight a loved one - and let that person know you're thinking of him or her.

© Copyright 2000, Arlene Harder, MA, MFT