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Friday, April 25, 2008

Poetry Friday - of Baseball and Patriots

Kind of a mixed bag on my mind this April day, we were discussing Patriot's Day last night at dinner, so that brought to mind The Midnight Ride of Paul Revere. And then we're full into baseball season now - so I thought of Casey at the Bat. But then I remembered a sequel to Casey at the Bat that I used to like.

So here's an April hodge-podge of Poetry.

The Midnight Ride of Paul Revere
by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

Listen my children and you shall hear
Of the midnight ride of Paul Revere,
On the eighteenth of April, in Seventy-five;
Hardly a man is now alive
Who remembers that famous day and year.

He said to his friend, "If the British march
By land or sea from the town to-night,
Hang a lantern aloft in the belfry arch
Of the North Church tower as a signal light,--
One if by land, and two if by sea;
And I on the opposite shore will be,
Ready to ride and spread the alarm
Through every Middlesex village and farm,
For the country folk to be up and to arm."

Read the rest of the poem here.

Casey at the Bat
by Ernest Lawrence Thayer
(last verse)

Oh, somewhere in this favored land the sun is shining bright;
The band is playing somewhere, and somewhere hearts are light,
And somewhere men are laughing, and somewhere children shout;
But there is no joy in Mudville –mighty Casey has struck out.


Read the beginning of the poem here.

Casey's Revenge
by Grantland Rice
(last verse)

Oh, somewhere in this favored land dark clouds may hide the sun.
And somewhere bands no longer play and children have no fun;
And somewhere over blighted lives there hangs a heavy pall;
But Mudville hearts are happy now -- for Casey hit the ball!


Read the beginning of the poem here.

And the Poetry Friday Round-up is being hosted by Tricia over at The Miss Rumphius Effect.

As an aside, my brother, at his blog, Full Immersion, has decided to do his own Friday thing - Friday's Foaming Rant (and this week he even includes a poem in it.)

1 comment:

Vivian Mahoney said...

This is the first year we missed Patriot's Day since we were in Virginia. Here's to the "April hodge-podge of poetry!"