Singlish
When Papa grabbed his squeezebox and baby hit the gong,
all the other children ran up to play along.
Henry played the drums and Molly the kazoo.
Oscar blew the tuba ’til he started to turn blue.
Sally on the saxophone and Henry on the flute,
Wanda on the trumpet went rootie tootie toot.
Mama led the singing and Grandma hummed along
as one-by-one the children joined them in their song.
All the kids went swaying, rocking on their toes
as they sang a song embellished by cardinals and crows.
The cattle in the pasture joined in with soothing moos—
the cockerels crooning descants with their cockadoodledoos.
The mourning doves sang background, telling of their woes,
while all the little sparrows cheeped neatly from their rows.
The horses voiced their whinnies and sheep all baaaahed along
until the world surrounding us had joined in on the song.
Woodpeckers beat percussion until our song was done,
joining us in music that proved that we were one.
Goldfinches and burros were next to join the throng,
all speaking the same language in this singalong.
I heard it from the mockingbird who heard it from the jay.
It was a pretty chorus that rose up from that day.
Now most days thereafter, we’ve sung in harmony.
If everyone would join us, how grand the world could be.
Sounds like my favorite scene from “Babe A Pig in the City. ” It wasn’t a great movie, but it was a glorious scene and this is a glorious poem.
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Thanks, Marilyn. I think I tried to watch that and just couldn’t I can’t even take gory fairy stories!!!
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And a great picture, too!
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Just took it at my friend Harriet’s house. This little dove flew from statue to statue to perch atop each one on her terraza..What a photo op. It doesn’t necessarily go with my poem, but it is a bird and I wanted to use it. All the “perfect” illustrations have been used already… sometimes twice…or were impossible to find. So, the little dove it is.
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so much better that you have the gift to do it yourself, and it really does work because it draws the readers eyes into the poem. you sure seem to be having fun!
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I love doing the photos, although I don’t have the training of the pros. I just enjoy snapping, then defining and cutting..All just fun.
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I was stunned when I saw your heading ~ Singlish. She knows Singlish?!! You see, Singlish is Singapore’s Creole, inculcated when we were children, without us questioning why, how, when. Perhaps only 3 million, excluding immigrants & foreign workers are familiar with Singlish. 😀 Then, I realized… different Singlish.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Singlish
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Enjoyed the light and upbeat poem.
Connie
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Poem and Photo are delightful! 🙂
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Thanks, Dorann..
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