When I'm in a situation where some mental stimulation
Would enliven my performance of assorted daily chores,
I visit Wordsmith's Forum where I'm sure to find a quorum
For some pleasant verbal games with folk beyond my country's shores.
This board has given pleasure in considerable measure
Since the start of the millennium, and long may it exist;
It offers many chances to make cognitive advances,
As it raises points of language we might otherwise have missed.
The Saxons and the Norsemen and the feudal Norman horsemen
Built a richly nuanced language which the scholars would extend
With technical formations having Latin derivations,
Or a Hellenistic origin, or possibly a blend.
Add other roots like Russian, and the scope for long discussion
Of vocabulary, grammar and orthography is great;
The anagrams are legion, and the slang of one's own region
Is another quaint phenomenon on which to ruminate.
In Sparteye's Game, the posting (and I don't mean this as boasting)
Is consistently ingenious, as readers will observe;
The verse by jenny jenny is as humorous as any,
And its idiosyncratic metre has undoubted verve.
If members wish to savour a neologistic flavour,
Then the cryptically titled Mensopause will whet their wit,
Or if they're not myopic, they can find an ancient topic
To revive with some fresh insight, or a joke if they see fit.
So keep up your invention, and refine your comprehension
Of unusual etymologies or quirky similes;
Let Wordsmith not be frugal in attracting hits on Google,
But maintain its high distinction by your contributions, please.
By A. C.
Bowden 
