I am really not one for poetry, but there have been a few here and there that have have caught my fancy. It is more often than not because they are humorous (I just can't seem to get into the serious ones). Nevertheless, here they are. My favorites.

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The Crocodile's Toothache

The crocodile went to the dentist
And he sat down in the chair,
And the dentist said,"Now tell me, sir,
Why does it hurt and where?"
And the crocodile said, "I'll tell you the truth,
I have a terrible ache in my tooth"
And he opened his jaws so wide, so wide,
That the dentist, he climbed right inside,
And the dentist laughed "Oh isn't this fun?"
As he pulled the teeth out one by one.
And the crocodile cried,"You're hurting me so!
Please put down your pliers and let me go."
But the dentist just laughed with a Ho Ho Ho,
And he said "I still have twelve to go-
Oops, that's the wrong one, I confess,
But what's one crocodile's tooth, more or less?"
Then suddenly, the jaws went SNAP,
And the dentist was gone, right off the map,
And where he went one could only guess...
To North or South or East or West...
He left no forwarding address.
But what's one dentist more or less?

Shell Silverstein,
Where the Sidewalk Ends

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Eighteen Flavors

Eighteen luscious, scrumptious flavors-
Chocolate, lime and cherry,
Coffee, pumpkin, fudge-banana
Caramel cream and boysenberry
Rocky road and toasted almond,
Butterscotch, vanilla dip,
Butter-brickle, apple ripple,
Coconut and mocha chip,
Brandy peach and lemon custard,
Each scoop lovely, smooth, and round,
Tallest ice-cream cone in town,
Lying there *sniff* on the ground.

Shell Silverstein,
Where the Sidewalk Ends

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Farmer and the Queen

"She's coming," the farmer said to the owl,
"Oh, what shal I, what shall I do?
Shall I bow when she comes?
Shall I twiddle my thumbs?"
The owl asked, "Who?"

"The Queen,the Queen, the royal Queen-
She'll pass the farm today.
Shall I salute?" he asked the horse.
The horse said, "Nay."

"Shall I give her a gift?" he asked the wren.
"A loveley momento for her to keep?
An egg or a peach or an ear of corn?"
The wren said, "Cheap."

"But should I curtsey or should I cheer?
Oh, here's her carriage now.
What should I do?" he asked the dog.
The dog said, "Bow."

And so he did, and so she passed,
Oh, tra lala lala,
"She smiled, she did!" he told the sheep.
The sheep said, "Bah."

Shell Silverstein,
Where the Sidewalk Ends