Wednesday, October 31, 2012

Day 31 of 31 Days of Books Off My Shelf

Day 31



Hey!

When I was in third grade, I had a teacher who loved to read us poetry.  She read this poem to us for Halloween that year so I thought I would share it with you.   Written in 1885 and originally entitled, "The Elf Child", this poem was inspired by a young girl who came to live at the Riley home following her father's death.  The poem can be found in this book along with many other familiar poems by well known poets such as Robert Louis Stevenson, Robert Frost, Emily Dickinson, and Edward Lear to name a few.

Favorite Poems Old and New
Selected by Helen Ferris

Favorite Poems Old and New 

LITTLE ORPHANT ANNIE
by James Whitcomb Riley
Little Orphant Annie's come to our house to stay,
An' wash the cups an' saucers up, an' brush the crumbs away,
An' shoo the chickens off the porch, an' dust the hearth, an' sweep,
An' make the fire, an' bake the bread, an' earn her board-an'-keep;
An' all us other children, when the supper-things is done,
We set around the kitchen fire an' has the mostest fun
A-list'nin' to the witch-tales 'at Annie tells about,
An' the Gobble-uns 'at gits you
Ef you
Don't
Watch
Out!
Onc't they was a little boy wouldn't say his prayers,--
An' when he went to bed at night, away up-stairs,
His Mammy heerd him holler, an' his Daddy heerd him bawl,
An' when they turn't the kivvers down, he wasn't there at all!
An' they seeked him in the rafter-room, an' cubby-hole, an' press,
An' seeked him up the chimbly-flue, an' ever'-wheres, I guess;
But all they ever found was thist his pants an' roundabout:--
An' the Gobble-uns 'll git you
Ef you
Don't
Watch
Out!
An' one time a little girl 'ud allus laugh an' grin,
An' make fun of ever' one, an' all her blood-an'-kin;
An' onc't, when they was "company," an' ole folks was there,
She mocked 'em an' shocked 'em, an' said she didn't care!
An' thist as she kicked her heels, an' turn't to run an' hide,
They was two great big Black Things a-standin' by her side,
An' they snatched her through the ceilin' 'fore she knowed what she's about!
An' the Gobble-uns 'll git you
Ef you
Don't
Watch
Out!
An' little Orphant Annie says, when the blaze is blue,
An' the lamp-wick sputters, an' the wind goes woo-oo!
An' you hear the crickets quit, an' the moon is gray,
An' the lightnin'-bugs in dew is all squenched away,--
You better mind yer parents, an' yer teachers fond an' dear,
An' churish them 'at loves you, an' dry the orphant's tear,
An' he'p the pore an' needy ones 'at clusters all about,
Er the Gobble-uns 'll git you
Ef you
Don't
Watch
Out!

Thank you for joining me for these past 31 days!  I've loved your comments and you being here.   Tomorrow, I'm going to be featuring a Bonus Book.   I really hope you'll come back to see the book that has had the most impact on my life.  Until then if you'd like to catch up on all of my 31 Day Book posts, click here.


 Happy Reading!

Mimi


"I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you."  
John 14:18  NIV Bible


























2 comments:

  1. Great series! I've certainly added a lot of titles to my to read list thisi month!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hey Shannon!
      Thanks so much and for reading my posts too!

      Delete