Little Boy Blue by Eugene Field (1850-1895)

The little toy dog is covered with dust,

   But sturdy and staunch he stands;
And the little toy soldier is red with rust,
   And his musket moulds in his hands.

Time was when the little toy dog was new,
   And the soldier was passing fair;
And that was the time when our Little Boy Blue
   Kissed them and put them there.

"Now, don't you go till I come," he said,
   "And don't you make any noise!"
So, toddling off to his trundle-bed,
   He dreamt of the pretty toys;

And, as he was dreaming, an angel song
   Awakened our Little Boy Blue—
Oh! the years are many, the years are long,
   But the little toy friends are true!

Ay, faithful to Little Boy Blue they stand,
   Each in the same old place— 
Awaiting the touch of a little hand,
   The smile of a little face;

And they wonder, as waiting the long years through
   In the dust of that little chair,
What has become of our Little Boy Blue,
   Since he kissed them and put them there.

The snoring dormouse

Hi!

It's been a long time. It's good to be back.

I thought you would like this video of a close cousin of mine having a snooze!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DlS3w1GGE8g

Ciao!

Bowsie

Hurt No Living Thing

By Christina Rossetti

Hurt no living thing:

Ladybird, nor butterfly,

Nor moth with dusty wing,

Nor cricket chirping cheerily,

Nor grasshopper so light of leap,

Nor dancing gnat, nor beetle fat,

Nor harmless worms that creep.

King Arthur

When good King Arthur ruled the land,

He was a goodly king:

He stole three pecks of barley meal,

To make a bag-pudding.

A bag-pudding the king did make,

And stuffed it well with plums;

And in it put great lumps of fat,

As big as my two thumbs.

The king and queen did eat thereof,

And noblemen beside;

And what they could not eat that night,

The queen next morning fried.

Anonymous

Soudley Ponds

Wow! Wasn’t yesterday fun!

It’s about time we had a bit of sun, isn’t it?

I went back to my sock drawer for a couple of weeks, the weather was so miserable.

Yesterday, I was out in the Forest. It was beautiful.

Down by the ponds the Damselflies and Dragonflies were out and about.

We are so lucky to be so close to the Forest.

I'm off to Soudley Ponds again today – see you there!

Ciao!

Bowsie

The Vision

by Vivienne Corby

One day, just at sunset, we came to a hill,

The three of us, me, little Judith, and Bill,

And we saw such a wonderful sight, we three,

That it seemed like a marvellous dream to me.

For there on the grass, in the shade of the trees,

Were hundreds of fairies who danced in the breeze;

And how their wings shone in the fast sinking sun!

We wanted to kiss them, yes, every one.

And then Billy sneezed, and they all flew away.

But still we are hoping to this very day

That we’ll see them again, on top of the hill,

The three of us, me, little Judith, and Bill.

The Ride-by-Nights

by Walter de la Mare (1873-1956)

Up on their brooms the Witches stream,

Crooked and black in the crescent’s gleam;

One foot high, and one foot low,

Bearded, cloaked, and cowled, they go.

‘Neath Charlie’s Wain they twitter and tweet,

And away they swarm ‘neath the Dragon’s feet.

With a whoop and a flutter they swing and sway,

And surge pell-mell down the Milky-Way.

Betwixt the legs of the glittering Chair

They hover and squeak in the empty air.

Then round they swoop past the glimmering Lion

To where Sirius barks behind huge Orion;

Up, then, and over to wheel amain,

Under the silver, and home again.