Spring has sprung,
The grass is ris,
I wonder where the birdies is?
The bird is on the wing.
But that's absurd;
I always thought the wing was on the bird?
Forgive me the doggerel, the origins of which are unknown (although in my head, I hear it said with a strong Brooklyn on New Jersey accent, so that 'birds' becomes 'boids'; presumably a clue to its origins).
My first signs of Spring are here.
The jasmine is flowering in the back laneways of Fitzroy, its masses of blossoms spilling out over cracked and splintered fences and rusty sheets of corrugated iron, sending out tantalising wafts of subtle fragrance; and the magnolia trees in Gertrude Street have begun to flower, transforming that grey thoroughfare, briefly, into something softer, gentler and purple-hued.
I love this time of year, even though it means my first bout of hayfever can't be far away.
7 comments:
I think the poem is by Ogdon Nash (author of that tried and true observation "candy is dandy, but liquor is quicker")
My father used to quote it annually. (And probably still does). I have always associated that little ditty, rightly or wrongly, with Groucho Marx.
Thanks, anonymous - that sounds appropriate, somehow.
Alison - oddly enough, my late father used to quote it too, which perhaps dates the saying to their generation; I'm assuming, of course, that your father is of a similar vintage to mine, ie a baby boomer, give that you and I are of an equivilent age...?
I culd no doubt google the rhyme to discover the secret of its origin, but a part of me rather enjoys not knowing for sure. Nash, Groucho - do I hear bids for other contenders? :-)
Oxford book of quotations says Ogdon Nash.
...However, if you say Boyds instead of boids, it could be Australian in origin
!!!
are you in some way referring to the band !!! (pronounced 'chk chk chk') sublime-ation, or am i missing something here?
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