"Scholars" by Walter de la Mare

Logic does well at school;
And Reason answers every question right;
Poll-parrot Memory unwinds her spool;
And Copy-cat keeps Teacher well in sight;

The Heart's a truant; nothing does by rule;
Safe in its wisdom, is taken for a fool;
Nods through the morning on the dunce's stool;
And wakes to dream all night.

"God's Wheel" by Shel Silverstein

God's Wheel by Shel Silverstein
GOD says to me with a kind of smile,
"Hey how would you like to be God awhile
And steer the world?"

"Okay," says I,
"I'll give it a try.

Where do I set?
How much do I get?
What time is lunch?
When can I quit?"

"Gimme back that wheel," says GOD.
"I don't think you're quite ready YET."

"Fear No More" by William Shakespeare

Fear no more the heat o' the sun;
Nor the furious winter's rages,
Thou thy worldly task hast done,
Home art gone, and ta'en thy wages;
Golden lads and girls all must,
As chimney sweepers come to dust.

Fear no more the frown of the great,
Thou art past the tyrant's stroke:
Care no more to clothe and eat;
To thee the reed is as the oak:
The sceptre, learning, physic, must
All follow this, and come to dust.

Fear no more the lightning-flash,
Nor the all-dread thunder-stone;
Fear not slander, censure rash;
Thou hast finished joy and moan;
All lovers young, all lovers must
Consign to thee, and come to dust.

"Siren Song" by Margaret Atwood

"Siren Song"

This is the one song everyone
would like to learn: the song
that is irresistible:

the song that forces me
to leap overboard in squadrons
even though they see the beached skulls

the song nobody knows
because anyone who has heard it
is dead, and the others can't remember.

Shall I tell you the secret
and if I do, will you get me
out of this bird suit?

I don't enjoy it here
squatting on this island
looking picturesque and mythical

with these two feathery maniacs,
I don't enjoy singing
this trio, fatal and valuable.

I will tell the secret to you,
to you, only to you.
Come closer. This song

is a cry for help: Help me!
Only you, only you can,
you are unique

at last. Alas
it is a boring song
but it works every time.

Suum Cuique

*"Suum Cuique" by Ralph Waldo Emerson

Wilt thou seal up the avenues of ill?
Pay every debt, as if God wrote the bill.


* Latin - "to each his own"

Whitman's "Full of Life Now"

Good job yesterday, guys. You all are cracking me up! Remember, with poetry it's all about tone. Think about the tone that the poem is trying to convey. Poems aren't always literal or straightforward in tone.

Full of Life Now
by Walt Whitman


FULL of life, now, compact, visible,

I, forty years old the Eighty-third Year of The States,

To one a century hence, or any number of centuries hence,

To you, yet unborn, these, seeking you.


When you read these, I, that was visible, am become invisible;

Now it is you, compact, visible, realizing my poems, seeking me;

Fancying how happy you were, if I could be with you, and become your comrade;

Be it as if I were with you. (Be not too certain but I am now with you.)

National Poetry Month!

In honor of National Poetry Month, I'm going to try to post a new poem each day in April. You can respond and/or react to these poems for extra credit. (You must say something more than "I like/don't like this poem" to get extra credit!) Without further ado, here's our first selection. This is one of my favorite poems by Dorothy Parker. Happy reading!

"One Perfect Rose"
A single flow'r he sent me, since we met.
All tenderly his messenger he chose;
Deep-hearted, pure, with scented dew still wet--
One perfect rose.

I knew the language of the floweret;
"My fragile leaves," it said, "his heart enclose."
Love long has taken for his amulet
One perfect rose.

Why is it no one ever sent me yet
One perfect limousine, do you suppose?
Ah no, it's always just my luck to get
One perfect rose.