Funny Poem Week: Day Two (Jack Prelutsky)

Jack Prelutsky is like Shel Silverstein for a younger generation. He's the funny poet that my six-year old knows best and his poems often come home with Owen after school. Owen has learned the nuance of language and the nature of rhyme by reading these silly poems. Yes, the poems are frivolous and juvenile but I find their simplicity and humor quite charming. I hope they give you a laugh and a sense of being a little kid once again.

Be Glad Your Nose Is on Your Face by Jack Prelutsky      

Be glad your nose is on your face,

not pasted on some other place,

for if it were where it is not,

you might dislike your nose a lot.

Imagine if your precious nose

were sandwiched in between your toes,

that clearly would not be a treat,

for you’d be forced to smell your feet.

Your nose would be a source of dread

were it attached atop your head,

it soon would drive you to despair,

forever tickled by your hair.

Within your ear, your nose would be

an absolute catastrophe,

for when you were obliged to sneeze,

your brain would rattle from the breeze.

Your nose, instead, through thick and thin,

remains between your eyes and chin,

not pasted on some other place—

be glad your nose is on your face!

 

 

I Found a Four Leaf Clover by Jack Prelutsky

 

I found a four-leaf clover

and was happy with my find,

but with time to think it over,

I’ve entirely changed my mind.

I concealed it in my pocket,

safe inside a paper pad,

soon, much swifter than a rocket,

my good fortune turned to bad.

       I smashed my fingers in a door,

       I dropped a dozen eggs,

       I slipped and tumbled to the floor,

       a dog nipped both my legs,

       my ring slid down the bathtub drain,

       my pen leaked on my shirt,

       I barked my shin, I missed my train,

       I sat on my dessert.

I broke my brand-new glasses,

and I couldn’t find my keys,

I stepped in spilled molasses,

and was stung by angry bees.

When the kitten ripped the curtain,

and the toast burst into flame,

I was absolutely certain

that the clover was to blame.

       I buried it discreetly

       in the middle of a field,

       now my luck has changed completely,

       and my wounds have almost healed.

       If I ever find another,

       I will simply let it be,

       or I’ll give it to my brother—

       he deserves it more than me.