Uncle. I said, uncle. Uncle!

Now here is a word.

I didn’t know this word until today.


avuncular

adjective | uh-VUNK-yuh-ler

And what could it mean?

Avuncular is used to describe someone or something as being “like an uncle,” especially “kind or friendly like an uncle.”

Like an uncle.


My dad had one brother. My mom had none.
So in that way, I had one uncle.
Ray.

My dad had three sisters. My mom had none.
My dad’s three sisters each were married.
So in that way, I had three more uncles.
Charles. John. Donald.

Today, they are all long gone.
Do I still have four uncles or none?

It all makes me wonder.
So now?
I’m crying uncle.
Like a monkey’s uncle.
Or the man from U.N.C.L.E.

I’ve noticed and liked some other uncles.
Like these:

Uncle Fester. Addams Family.
Uncle Remus. Song of the South.
Uncle Albert. Laughing all the way in Mary Poppins.
Uncle Ben Parker. Spidey.
Uncle Jed. The Beverly Hillbillies.
Uncle Henry. The Wizard of Oz.

I’d write you a poem about all these uncles.
But nothing rhymes with uncle.

Well. Except for carbuncle. And that is just gross. A carbuncle is a cluster of boils — painful, pus-filled bumps — that form a connected area of infection under the skin. An uncle with a carbuncle. Blech.

And now?
I’m really crying, uncle.
But aunt it grand?

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“No family is complete without an embarrassing uncle.”
— Peter Morgan

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“Everyone had an uncle who tried to steal their nose.”
— Peter Kay

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“Pull my finger.”
— Uncles Everywhere

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