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Theodore Roethke
Theodore Roethke
Theodore Roethke was born in Saginaw, Michigan, in 1908. As a child, he spent much time in the greenhouse owned by his father and uncle. His impressions of the natural world contained...
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I Am! Said the Lamb [excerpt]  
by Theodore Roethke


The Donkey

I had a Donkey, that was all right,
But he always wanted to fly my Kite;
Every time I let him, the String would bust.
Your Donkey is better behaved, I trust.
 

The Ceiling

Suppose the Ceiling went Outside
And then caught Cold and Up and Died?
The only Thing we'd have for Proof
That he was Gone, would be the Roof;
I think it would be Most Revealing
To find out how the Ceiling's Feeling.
 

The Chair

A funny thing about a Chair:
You hardly ever think it's there.
To know a Chair is really it,
You sometimes have to go and sit.
 

The Hippo

A Head or Tail--which does he lack?
I think his Forward's coming back!
He lives on Carrots, Leeks and Hay;
He starts to yawn--it takes All Day--

Some time I think I'll live that way.
 

The Lizard

The Time to Tickle a Lizard,
Is Before, or Right After, a Blizzard.
Now the place to begin
Is just under his Chin,--
And here's more Advice:
Don't Poke more than Twice
At an Intimate Place like his Gizzard.



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"The Donkey", copyright © 1961 by Theodore Roethke. "The Ceiling", © 1950 by Theodore Roethke. "The Chair", copyright © 1950 by Theodore Roethke. "The Hippo", copyright © 1961 by Theodore Roethke. "The Lizard", copyright © 1961 by Theodore Roethke. From The Collected Poems of Theodore Roethke by Theodore Roethke. Used by permission of Doubleday, a division of Random House, Inc. For online information about other Random House, Inc. books and authors, see the Internet website at http://www.randomhouse.com
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