Through stained glass windows are partridges
Singing in the boughs
Reciting favorite passages
That pleasantly could rouse
The dear elven-child
From his lovely dream
And with a lovely, toothless smile
His candor would brightly beam
This child’s smile could heal a heart
Heavy from a loss
And could mend the broken wing
Of a broken albatross
Even once he swore he heard
A bird that learned to speak
Words of English origin
From his straight-ish beak
“You’ve got a joy that few will know
Ever in their life
You could warm the heart of snow
And restore a widowed wife
So go on, use your cheery child smile
To bring light to the world
It’s not the temper nor the style
Of many men, not even ones with many pearls.”
So the child wandered on
Not knowing where to be
Smiling everywhere he had gone
Over mountains and across seas
He hoped to find some countryside
With other folk like him
Or mayhaps a lovely bride
To share his chipper vim
Ever he searched far and wide
His candor still to brim
But slowly did his smile slide
His mouth corners near his chin
Along again came the plover-bird
As he sat beneath a tree
“Dear elvish-child, are you hurt?
Where have gone your smile, your teeth?”
“I have searched all my life
For someone to share my joy
One who knows laughter in rife
And who, after hours, will not be annoyed”
The plover-bird thought long and hard
At the boy’s harsh plight
No longer live jesters and bards
To bring such jovial light
“Well,” he spoke in a weighted tone
“Would you rather smile forever,
Or never be alone?
I fear there isn’t a single one
Who knows cheerfulness like you
Even a wife and a strong son
Will come to frown all too soon.”
The elvish boy stroked his bare chin
And weighed his options with care
Selfishness truly is a cruel sin
But what is selfish when no one exists to share
Decidedly, he turned to the plover
“I know what I must do.
Unless there is a four-leafed clover
Or some sort of witch’s brew
I must become a creature who
Can smile on any day
You sing with a lilting tune
Even when the sky is gray
So I shall grin, despite my mood
And bear all of my teeth
Even if my heart shall brood
And anger cause me to seethe.”
The elvish child giggled once more
Though most halfheartedly
Then, as if revealing a shore
His skin ebbed away, revealing a scaly beach
He fell to his hands and his knees
His snout grew long and cold
His mouth revealed his smiling teeth
And he resembled a dinosaur of old
This is why the plover-friend
Grins just like a child
And why plovers are on the mend
In the mouths of a crocodile
Beautiful!
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Thank you!!!
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