A grownup jump rope rhyme.
Valentine by Donald Hall
Chipmunks jump, and
Greensnakes slither.
Rather burst than
not be with her.
Bluebirds fight, but
bears are stronger.
We've got fifty
years or longer.
Hoptoads hop, but
Hogs are fatter.
Nothing else but
us can matter.
This poem seems so simple, but is so good. You could imagine the guy at his window or out by a stream, writing it just in his journal for fun, thinking about her. Or you could picture him putting it on a valentine for his significant other, trying to be funny by calling her "her". I think the most fun part about poetry is trying to imagine who the person was who wrote it--not the author but the speaker of the poem, as they say in english class. What exactly were all the circumstances surrounding the event of his picking up the pencil and deciding to write? What was he feeling and what was he like? That's the main question I always have about poems--who said this and why? And also the other cool thing about this poem is how he gets the rhythm exactly like a jump rope rhyme.
