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Hello and Good-bye
Hello and good-by
Hello and good-by
When I'm in a swing
Swinging low and then high,
Good-by to the ground
Hello to the sky.
Hello to the rain
Good-by to the sun
Then hello again sun
When the rain is all done
In blows the winter,
Away the birds fly.
Good-by and hello
Hello and good-by.
from The Llama Who Had No Pajama by Mary Ann Hoberman
Butterfish Bay
I rowed the boat over to Butterfish Bay
(Butterfish Bay is quite far away).
I took my lunch in a paper sack
And said that I didn't know when I'd be back:
I might get caught in a terrible squall
And then I'd never get back at all,
Or the boat might tip over and I might drown,
Or I might spend the night in Butterfish Town;
All kinds of things happen to ships at sea.
That's all very well, said Mother to me,
As long as you're home at half past three.
--from The Llama Who Had No Pajama by Mary Ann Hoberman
Hello, Rain
Hello, rain,
Hello, rain,
Dripping down
The windowpane.
You are wet,
I am dry.
You can't wet me
Though you try,
For when I go outside
My umbrella,
Held up high,
And my rubbers
Keep me dry.
--from The Llama Who Had No Pajama by Mary Ann Hoberman
FROG
Pollywiggle
Pollywog
Tadpole
Bullfrog
Leaps on
Long legs
Jug-o-rum
Jelly eggs
Sticky tongue
Tricks flies
Spied by
Flicker eyes
Wet skin
Cold blood
Squats in
Mucky mud
Leaps on
Long legs
Jug-o-rum
Jelly eggs
Laid in
Wet bog . . .
Pollywiggle
Pollywog.
--from The Llama Who Had No Pajama by Mary Ann Hoberman
A Catch
I've caught a fish!
Come look!
I've got him on my hook.
He saw my worm down in the pond,
And fishes all are very fond
Of worms, so up he swam to mine,
And now I've got him on my line.
He's just the proper size to munch.
(I think I'll have him fried for lunch.)
--from The Llama Who Had No Pajama by Mary Ann Hoberman
RACCOON
Crash goes the trash can! Clatter and clacket!
What in the world can be making that racket?
I hurry to look by the light of the moon,
And what do I find? Why, a fine fat raccoon!
All through the garden the garbage he's strewn,
And he's eating his supper, that robber raccoon,
Eating so nicly without fork or spoon,
Why, his manners are perfect, that thieving raccoon!
And wasn't he smart to discover that pail?
And wasn't he smart to uncover that pail?
And isn't he lucky he won't go to jail
For stealing his dinner and making a mess
For me to clean up in the morning, I guess,
While he, the old pirate, abundantly fed,
Curls up in a ball fast asleep in his bed?
--from The Llama Who Had No Pajama by Mary Ann Hoberman
MOUSE
Dear little
Mere little
Merry little
Meadow mouse
Where do you live? Where do you live?
In a mole's hole
Bird's nest
Hollow of a hickory
That's where I live. That's where I live.
Dear little
Mere little
Merry little
Meadow mouse
What do you do? What do you do?
Hunt for food and
Care for my babies
That's what I do. That's what I do.
Dear little
Mere little
Merry little
Meadow mouse
What do you eat? What do you eat?
Roots and
Seeds and
Nuts and
Insects
That's what I eat. That's what I eat.
Dear little
Mere little
Merry little
Meadow mouse
What do you fear? What do you fear?
Every kind of stranger
Every kind of danger
That's what I fear. That's what I fear.
Dear little
Mere little
Merry little
Meadow mouse
What do you love? What do you love?
Running and
Racing and
Chasing round in circles.
That's what I love. That's what I love.
--from The Llama Who Had No Pajama by Mary Ann Hoberman
HOW MANY?
A mother skunk all black and white
Leads her babies down the street
Pitter patter
Pitter patter
Pitter patter
TWENTY feet.
Off they toddle slow and steady
Making tiny twitter cires
Flitter flutter
Flitter flutter
Flitter flutter
TEN small eyes.
Nose to tail-tip in procession
Single file the family trails
Flippy floppy
Flippy floppy
Flippy floppy
FIVE long tails.
From The
Llama Who Had No Pajama by Mary Ann Hobermane street a dog comes barking,
Sees the strangers, leaps pell-mell...
Ickle pickle
Ickle pickle
Ickle pickle
ONE BIG SMELL!
ICE SKATING
In winter when the biting breezes
Blow and all the water freezes,
Then it's time, it's time to go
Skating on the ice.
Choose a day that's bright and clear,
Bundle up from toe to ear;
It's the time, the time of year
For skating on the ice.
I perch upon the snowy rocks
And pull on both my woolen socks;
I lace my skates and tie them fast
And then I'm up and off at last.
I cannot make a figure eight
(I still have trouble going straight),
But just the same I love to skate,
To ice-skate on the ice.
From The Llama Who Had No Pajama by Mary Ann Hoberman
FOXES
A litter of little black foxes. And later
A litter of little gray foxes. And later
A litter of little white foxes.
The white ones are lighter than gray. Not a lot.
The gray ones are lighter than black. Just a little.
The litters are lighter in moonlight. They glitter.
They gleam in the moonlight. They glow and they glisten.
Out on the snow see the silver fox sparkle.
From The Llama Who Had No Pajama by Mary Ann Hoberman
CHANGING
I know what I feel like;
I'd like to be you
And feel what you feel like
And do what you do.
I'd like to change places
For maybe a week
And look like your look-like
And speak as you speak
And think what you're thinking
And go where you go
And feel what you're feeling
And know what you know.
I wish we could do it;
What fun it would be
If I could try you out
And you could try me.
From The Llama Who Had No Pajama by Mary Ann Hoberman
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