Ian, On His Birthday

Between urban centers, highways spirit
Both men and machines at top speeds.
Many routes are multiple centuries old ;
Animal trails eons in use, vegetation free,
Adopted by horse and rider for their ease.
Widened and then graveled to comfort use
Soon translated into macadam and concrete.
Their history is but an afterthought by now.

In somebody's world similar progression exists
Tracing antiquity into print for others to digest.
But, in your world, a learned one of open inquiry,
I surmise your thrust is not back but is forward.
Highways of the future may not follow footprints
Of wild animals, they'll follow hypothesis, theory.
Maybe you'll be forced to blaze your own trails,
Create you own theories, develop fresh hypotheses.

My bet's on you ! Another year pasted so many more
To come. Expanding beyond trails of your youth, you
Are beginning to develop super highways of the future.
Trial and error are endemic to your highway system.
Your's is not patterned to the rugged lay of the land,
It functions within the folds of your own brain matter.
You have the code, you have the map, lead the way.
Pot holes will occur and can be repaired, smooth riding.

On Your Birthday,
With All Our Love,
Nanny&PopPop