My Hero....A.A. Milne

an odd choice, I know.

I so love his poetry, and quote it often to children (grown or not).

I recently met a gentleman named Weatherby, which brought out the old "James James Morrison Morrison Weatherby George Dupree" and sent me off with a book in hand...

I quickly found a couple of my most favorite poems just because they are such a different spin on classic themes..

example...

and this is SO true no matter what age or circumstance I have ever been...

Politeness

If people ask me,
I always tell them:
"Quite well, thank you, I'm very glad to say."

If people ask me,
I always answer,
"Quite well, thank you, how are you to-day?"

I always answer,
I always tell them,
If they ask me

Politely.....

BUT SOMETIMES

I wish

That they wouldn't.


and the twin,

Independence

I never did, I never did,I never did like
"Now take care, dear!"

I never did, I never did, I never did want
"Hold-my-hand";

I never did, I never did, I never did think much of
"Not up there, dear!"

It's no good saying it.

They don't understand.


and (I think we've discussed this one at length).. one of my all time faves..


Sneezles

Christopher Robin
Had wheezles
And sneezles,
They bundled him
Into
His bed.
They gave him what goes
With a cold in the nose,
And some more for a cold
In the head.
They wondered
If wheezles
Could turn
Into measles,
If sneezles
Would turn
Into mumps;
They examined his chest
For a rash,
And the rest
Of his body for swellings and lumps.
They sent for some doctors
In sneezles
And wheezles
To tell them what ought
To be done.
All sorts and conditions
Of famous physicians
Came hurrying round
At a run.

They all made a note
Of the state of his throat,
They asked if he suffered from thirst;
They asked if the sneezles
Came after the wheezles,
Or if the first sneezle
Came first.
They said, "If you teazle
A sneezle
Or wheezle,
A measle
May easily grow.
But humour or pleazle
The wheezle
Or sneezle,
The measle
Will certainly go."
They expounded the reazles
For sneezles
And wheezles,
The manner of measles
When new.
They said "If he freezles
In draughts and in breezles,
Then PHTHEEZLES
May even ensue."


Christopher Robin
Got up in the morning,
The sneezles had vanished away.
And the look in his eye
Seemed to say to the sky,
"Now, how to amuse them to-day?"


I also thought that Ernest Shepard's illustrations were spot on, and couldn't imagine any others, especially in the older books. Such joyful, thoughtful, imagineful children! (although he apparently didn't think much of his work on them).


and, of course, I could go on forever...

I plan on reading all of them to my new grand niece...

frequently.