Poetry Friday: Robert Louis Stevenson

In honor of Robert Louis Stevenson's birthday tomorrow, here's a poem a certain one of my children who would like to remain anonymous recently memorized:

The Swing
by Robert Louis Stevenson

How do you like to go up in a swing,               Up in the air so blue?  Oh, I do think it the pleasantest thing               Ever a child can do!  Up in the air and over the wall,               Till I can see so wide,  River and trees and cattle and all               Over the countryside--  Till I look down on the garden green,                Down on the roof so brown--  Up in the air I go flying again,                Up in the air and down!

Discussing Mr. Stevenson this morning at the table, we decided it was pretty impressive that he's equally accomplished in both poetry and prose. One of our favorite Jim Weiss CD's is Treasure Island, part of that proud tradition of folks-marooned-on-an-island tales to which I owe my favorite -- and sadly, now-concluded -- TV show. You know what I mean. 


Speaking of memorizing poems, we got our paws on a new book from the library called Julie Andrews' Collection of Poems, Songs, and Lullabies. It's lovely in style and content and includes a CD of Ms. Andrews (a.k.a. Mary Poppins) and her daughter reading their favorite poems. Yesterday in the yard, I read Joyce Kilmer's "Trees" to Eliza as she perched in our giant ash. She decided she'd memorize that one, to catch up with you-kno-who. Find it here. 


Poetry Friday linkup here.