Monday, August 19, 2013

Happy Birthday, Mr Nash

He would have been 111 today. We are talking about Mr. Ogden Nash, who was born on this day in 1902. I had wondered what it would have been like to grow up with the name Ogden but it turns out his actual first name was Frederic. Which, when you think about it, maybe wasn't so much better when picturing playground incidents or how it sounds when your mom calls you home for dinner. Neither name makes it onto the top 40 list of popular names for boys that year so who knows what his parents were thinking. Nashville, TN is named for his great-great uncle, or something like that, at least some forebear on his father's side as far as I can tell, and, no, I haven't totally lost track of today's blog topic. Which is to celebrate the fact that it is Ogden Nash's birthday and he happens to be one of my favorite poets. He wrote a whole series of poems about animals. What follows is my favorite of those. I love how he makes up rhymes when no suitable word exists.

           The Panther 

The panther is like a leopard,
Except it hasn't been peppered.
Should you behold a panther crouch,
Prepare to say Ouch.
Better yet, if called by a panther,
Don't anther.


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