FAMILIAR OBJECTS
Reading edition
Here are some poems about things with which we are all quite familiar: the Moon and the Stars that we see through our bedroom window; Pussy purring on the hearthrug, the spotted shell on the mantelpiece.
The Moon
O, look at the moon! She is shining up there; O mother, she looks Like a lamp in the air. Last week she was smaller, And shaped like a bow; But now she’s grown bigger, And round as an O. Pretty moon, pretty moon, How you shine on the door, And make it all bright On my nursery floor! You shine on my playthings, And show me their place, And I love to look up At your pretty bright face. And there is a star Close by you, and maybe That small twinkling star Is your little baby.
Eliza Lee Follen.
The Star
Twinkle, twinkle, little star, How I wonder what you are! Up above the world so high, Like a diamond in the sky. When the blazing sun is gone, When he nothing shines upon, Then you show your little light, Twinkle, twinkle, all the night. Then the traveller in the dark Thanks you for your tiny spark; He could not see which way to go, If you did not twinkle so. In the dark blue sky you keep, And often through my curtains peep, For you never shut your eye Till the sun is in the sky. As your bright and tiny spark Lights the traveller in the dark, Though I know not what you are, Twinkle, twinkle, little star.
Ann and Jane Taylor.
Kitty
Once there was a little kitty Whiter than snow; In a barn she used to frolic, Long time ago. In the barn a little mousie Ran to and fro; For she heard the kitty coming, Long time ago. Two eyes had little kitty, Black as a sloe; And they spied the little mousie, Long time ago. Four paws had little kitty, Paws soft as dough, And they caught the little mousie, Long time ago. Nine teeth had little kitty, All in a row; And they bit the little mousie, Long time ago. When the teeth bit little mousie, Little mouse cried “Oh!” But she got away from kitty, Long time ago.
Mrs E. Prentiss.
Kitty: How to Treat Her
I like little Pussy, her coat is so warm, And if I don’t hurt her she’ll do me no harm; So I’ll not pull her tail, nor drive her away, But Pussy and I very gently will play.
Kitty: what She thinks of Herself
I am the Cat of Cats. I am The everlasting cat! Cunning, and old, and sleek as jam, The everlasting cat! I hunt the vermin in the night— The everlasting cat! For I see best without the light— The everlasting cat!
W. B. Rands.
The Sea Shell
Sea Shell, Sea Shell, Sing me a song, O please! A song of ships and sailor-men, Of parrots and tropical trees; Of islands lost in the Spanish Main Which no man ever may see again, Of fishes and corals under the waves, And sea-horses stabled in great green caves— Sea Shell, Sea Shell, Sing me a song, O please!
Amy Lowell.