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THE READING MOTHER
In last February's edition, we mentioned that Strickland Gillilan, author of
The World's Shortest Poem,
(FLEAS: Adam/Had 'em) had also composed a piece called The Reading
Mother. We quoted these eight lines, which are repeated thousands of times
throughout the English-speaking world every Mothers' Day:
I had a Mother who read me things
That wholesome life to a child's heart brings
Stories that stir with an upward touch.
Oh that every Mother were such!You may have tangible wealth untold
Caskets of jewels and coffers of gold.
Richer than I you can never be.
I had a Mother who read to me.
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One of our U.S. readers, Rosie Kolodziejczyk, of Kingsland, Georgia, has
e-mailed us:
There is more to the poem than what you printed. A copy was given to me as a
Mother's Day gift by my own mother, because I have always read to my children.
It is one of my most prized possessions.
It was a newspaper clipping. Probably out of the Dear Abby column or
something of that nature. I keep it in a small frame on the sill of my kitchen
window. It helps me keep things in perspective and resist the urge to just let
the kids watch t.v. before bed :-).
Here's the complete poem:
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THE READING MOTHER
Strickland Gillilan
I HAD A MOTHER who read to me
Sagas of pirates who scoured the sea,
Cutlasses clenched in their yellow teeth,
"Blackbirds" stowed in the hold beneath
I had a Mother who read me lays
Of ancient and gallant and golden days;
Stories of Marmion and Ivanhoe,
Which every boy has a right to know.
I had a Mother who read me tales
Of Celert the hound of the hills of Wales,
True to his trust till his tragic death,
Faithfulness blent with his final breath.
I had a Mother who read me the things
That wholesome life to the boy heart brings-
Stories that stir with an upward touch,
Oh, that each mother of boys were such.
You may have tangible wealth untold;
Caskets of jewels and coffers of gold.
Richer than I you can never be --
I had a Mother who read to me. |
Copyright © 2003
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Eric
Shackle
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Story first posted
September 2003
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