I think that I shall never spy
A puppy so depressed as I.
All other dogs in my estate
Seem to have such joy innate.
I am a pup that likes to wander
Here and there and over yonder.
I like to run up every hill
Just like little Jack and Jill.
I think I’d like to be a hawk,
Or just a fish, if it could talk.
Or perhaps a flying gnat.
Or even a very well-fed cat.
This morning I saw a bumble bee,
That seemed to fly about with glee.
But then, while still upon the wing,
It gave me such a nasty sting.
I heard a lovely lark in song
And thought that’s just where I belong.
But when I finished just one note,
The animals ran to the undergrowth.
Then I spied a gorgeous trout
In a pond just swimming all about.
When I was drawn to that type of life,
I suddenly thought of my own chef’s knife.
Then, by chance, I saw a snake,
Resting in the sun, beside a lake.
But when I heard his awful hiss,
I knew he was my nemesis.
Near a tree was a waddling duck,
And with his life I was greatly struck.
But duck à la king is a horrible thought.
Such a life is with danger fraught.
I think I will saunter home,
And since I am a gastronome,
I’ll eat a very hearty meal,
And very good it will make me feel.
And now upon my silk I lie,
In vacant and in pensive mood,
Surrounded by the best of food,
To other lives I say “bye-bye”.
*****************************************
Dear Members of the Human Race;
I think that all of you agree,
I know that all of you can see,
I’ve got a pretty good esprit,
And I’m a pup happy as can be.
by Joyce Kilmer’s Dog
with the collaboration of Cornelius McDonnell
