Poem: WHEN MOTHER READS ALOUD...

By Unknown Author


A mother's reading to her children.

When Mother reads aloud, the past
Seems real as every day;
I hear the tramp of armies vast,
I see the spears and lances cast,
I join the thrilling fray;
Brave knights and ladies fair and proud
I meet, when Mother reads aloud.

When Mother reads aloud, far lands
Seem very near and true;
I cross the desert’s gleaming sands,
Or hunt the jungle’s prowling bands,
Far heights, whose peaks the cold mist shroud,
I scale, when Mother reads aloud.

When Mother reads aloud, I long for noble deeds to do …
To help the right, redress the wrong,
It seems so easy to be strong,
So simple to be true.
Oh, thick and fast the visions crowd
My eyes, when Mother reads aloud.

(was posted earlier on 16 February 2005)

REPOST: THE READING FATHER (Poem)

by Edwards Steeley
(found in The Reading Teacher 48.8 (1995), page 695)

When I was a child,
My favourite time of every day
Came just before my bedtime
When I found a favourite storybook
And climbed on Daddy's lap.
His whiskers brushed my hair
As I leaned back against his chest,
His strong arms reached 'round me
To open our passport to adventure.
I could feel his deep voice rumble
Against my back as he began to lead us
On our evening journey
Oft' we'd tramp the Hundred Acre Wood
Or go Where the Wild Things were.
We steamed down the Yangtze River;
Stood on the banks of
The great, grey-green greasy Limpopo River.
We joined Fern to watch her barnyard friends.
Dr. Doolittle taught us to talk to the animals.
We cried together when our sled dog died
Just before crossing the finish line.
But no matter how far we had roamed,
We always returned safely in time for bed.

And now I prepare for yet another journey
As my curly-haired toddler climbs onto my lap.

1st posting was on Thursday, Feb. 24, 2005