As a kid, I loved to read. My favorite books are now in a box, very torn up, pages missing, covers ripped, etc. This is a good sign, that I read those books until they literally started falling apart!
One of my favorite poets/authors was and is Shel Silverstein. His poems always made me laugh, or cry, no matter how many times I read them. One of my favorites was “Messy Room“. This one always held a special place in my heart, as it seemed to sometimes be describing my room, and if nothing else, made me roll on the floor with laughter. I mean, who cannot laugh at this as a kid:
His vest has been left in the hall
A lizard named Ed is asleep in his bed
And his smelly old sock has been stuck to the wall
Whosever room this is should be ashamed. (10-13)
While this poem is a great, easy, lighthearted read, there are many of Shel’s poems that have more of an underlying meaning, and while they are great for children, they still have meaning to adults.
One of his great peoms that has always had a soft spot in my heart is “The Little Boy and the Old Man“. This great peom was in Shel’s famous book, A Light In the Attic. This one just has so much meaning behind it, and really makes you think. I can in no way give this one justice, so here is the poem:
Said the little boy, “Sometimes I drop my spoon.”
Said the old man, “I do that too.”
The little boy whispered, “I wet my pants.”
“I do that too,” laughed the little old man.
Said the little boy, “I often cry.”
The old man nodded, “So do I.”
“But worst of all,” said the little boy, “it seems
Grown-ups don’t pay attention to me.”
And he felt the warmth of a wrinkled old hand.
“I know what you mean,” said the little old man.
Another great tear-jerker from Shel Silverstein is his book, The Giving Tree. This book is the story of a little boy who loved a tree. This tree is the boy’s friend. The tree lets the boy climb her, gives him apples, lets him take naps on her, and play with her leaves. Soon, the boy was asking the tree for favors, which the tree happily gave.
After many favors, the only thing left of the tree was a small stump, as the boy had used the apples for money, the branches for a house, and the trunk for a boat. This made the tree sad. Many years later, the boy (now a very old man) came back. He was old and tired, and the tree had nothing for him, or so she thought. The old man now needed a place to rest, and the stump of the tree was a perfect resting spot. And this made both the ‘boy’ and the tree happy.
This story shows how unconditional love and friendship can thrive, even when one party does not fully realize the extent of that love, and sometimes takes advantage of it. This is a great book to read to children, or even better, to an adult who needs a little simple advice.
