Childhood Poems

INTRODUCTION: Second copy of "Childhood Poems" (original draft), plus some. I'm guessing that I decided to put them together in a neater format, seeing as the earlier versions contain crossed-out misspellings and this set is somewhat nicer. This set consists of a stapled-together booklet of lined paper (the staples have rusted away!!), written on in red permanent marker (all but for the last page, with "Cat 2 or Nightmare," which is written in fuchsia colored pencil); it's covered with mold and is rotted or gnawed away on the edges but is in somewhat better shape than the other version. Both sets were found in the old toychest in the basement. I would put them from around the same time period judging by the writing implement used, and tentatively date this to 1986-88 (elementary school).

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Poems

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Dewdrop

A shimmering
Dewdrop
On a single blade of
Grass
Creates
A million tiny rainbows
Until
It dies
As it falls to the ground
Below

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Rose

The reddest
Rose
Grew in the garden,
It's [sic] pinkish-red petals
Like the fuzz
On a red butterfly,
It's [sic] stiff green stem
Like the strongest tree,
Yet built
Like tiny drops of hope.

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Rainbows

A rainbow
Is a giant arc of color.
But a rainbow
Is not only that.
Red is a rose which stands for
peace.
Orange is fruit which stands for
life.
Yellow is the sun which stands for
warmth.
Green is the grass which stands for
spring.
Blue is clouds which stand for
sorrow.
Violet is the violets outside
Picked and made into a bouquet
Which stands for
love.

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Pegasus

Silver wings beat the air
And a pegasus, it's [sic] mane fair,
Flies off, shimmering, like the
Flame on a flare.

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The Pond

The water is like the sky.
Crystal clear.
The purest, cleanes [sic] water.
UNTIL
A creature called MAN dumped
OIL into the water.
The heron was killed
And so was the grebe
When garbage was poured into the
Pond.
The birds flew away
And the animals migrated.
But the fish couldn't be saved.
Soon the pond looked HORRIBLE.
Until a kind creature also called MAN
Cleaned it with help.
But not help from the MEN
Who did it in the first place.

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Cat

Shiny eyes, sleek body
He knows nobody.
He does not live in a valley
He, this cat, lives in the alley.

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A Tree

A tree sits
Alone
All by itself
Like a dog without a
Bone
Or an antique without a
Shelf.
Till someone came
Out
And walked to the
Tree
And looked all
Around
And hummed like a
Bee
His axes [sic] was all
Sharp
And he swung it
Around
It made a sound like a
Harp
And the tree fell to the ground. [Note--last part of this line is mutilated, but I've made a pretty good guess that it ends with "ground."]

[Illustration: A bird with a large black beak--possibly a crow or raven--perched, looking over its shoulder, at a man who walks into the distance with a little pine tree slung over his shoulder, leaving footprints behind him.]

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Cat 2 or Nightmare

He passes as a black shadow in the night.
Have you seen the cat? No one has,
He knows everybody
He knows everything about this planet
He sees through eyes not yet clouded by pollution
Do not try to hide; he will be there,
Looming over you,
Like some past guilt over past sins.
Those who have seen him do not return from his darkness.
He'll follow you everywhere, and finally slay you with his claws of illness
You'll look into his eyes and see that he is laughing at you, knowing about you
He can read your mind.
The nightmare's essence. [Note--this looks to have been originally spelled "esscence."]
When you wake up, if you are lucky enough to escape from him,
You may see his black form disappear into a mist
Looming over you.
The Nightmare. [Note--what the *$&*#&$ was I thinking when I wrote this at like ten years old?!]