When Patience Picks the Peas

How many times we read in verse such funny lines as these:

When “Sally Sings”, or “Winnie Walks” or “Sara Sails the Seas”;

“When Tessie Trips”, or “Dora Dips”, or “Polly Promenades”,

Or “Laura Laughs” or “Eva Eyes the Evening Everglades”.

If poets write and people read such funny things as these

Why shouldn’t some poor poet pen “When Patience Picks the Peas”?

Out in the garden ‘mongst the corn and beans and beet and all,

Where grows the parsnip, peach and punk’ and pigweed rank and tall,

There stands a princely row of peas all podded up to par,

And Patience may be seen each day ‘neath papa’s Panama,

A-picking picking pecks of peas, performing peacefully

Her pleasant pastime, picking peas, a peerless picture, she.

She pokes her pinky fingertips amongst the clinging vines.

And picks the peas and puts them in her pretty pan that shines;

A perfect picture Patience is pursuing peacefully

Her proud position picking peas; her parents’ pride is she.

To me these other poems pale compared to lines like these:

“When pretty Patience putteth out to pick her parents’ peas.”

Aug. 14, ‘06