Limericks and The Blarney Stone

artwork by Veronica K.

It's a day for shamrocks, for leprechauns, for the wearin' o' the green: Happy St. Patrick's Day, Poetry Paraders!  Originally an observance honoring Ireland's patron saint who died in the mid-fifth century, St. Patrick's Day became an official feast day in the early seventeenth century. Over the years, the holiday grew into a celebration of Irish culture around the world. Think green on March seventeen: city residents dye rivers and fountains green, gardeners plant green peas, and the local grocery store sells tasty-looking green bagels for us to snack on as we read St. Patrick's Day poetry:

artwork by Veronica K.

 Wearing of the Green 

It ought to come in April,

or, better yet, in May

when everything is green as green--

I mean St. Patrick's Day.

With still a week of winter

this wearing of the green

seems rather out of season--

it's rushing things, I mean,

But maybe March is better

when all is done and said:

St. Patrick brings a promise,

a four-leaf-clover promise,

a green-all-over promise

of springtime just ahead! 

-- Aileen Fisher

St. Patrick's Day 

Green
is in my head;
green for an island
evergreen with wood sorrel
creeping over a great stone chair;
pipers dancing on green turf;
green snakes drowning in the sea;

There, Saint Patrick stands
holding a shamrock

and I take it
for Ireland-- 
and wear its green.


-- Myra Cohn Livingston

Poetry on Parade thinks it's fun to celebrate St. Patrick's Day with a pot o' limerick gold!  As we have learned, limericks are short, funny, five-line verses with special rhyme and rhythm patterns.   Limericks are named after a county in Ireland where, according to legend, townspeople shouted Will you come up to Limerick? when inviting poets to perform. Limerick rhymes always follows an A-A-B-B-A pattern; the rhythm always sounds like da DUM da da DUM da da DUM.

A diner while dining at Crewe
Found a very large mouse in his stew.
      Said the waiter, "Don't shout
      And wave it about,
Or the rest will be wanting one too. 

-- Author unknown 

There was a young woman named Bright
Whose speed was much faster than light.
      She set out one day
      In a relative way,
And returned on the previous night. 

-- Author unknown 

There was an old man of Peru
Who dreamt he was eating his shoe
      He woke in the night
      With a terrible fright
To find it was perfectly true. 

-- Edward Lear 

There was an Old Man of Kilkenny,
Who never had more than a penny;
      He spent all that money,
      In onions and honey,
That wayward Old Man of Kilkenny. 

-- Edward Lear

There was on Old Man of the Isles,
Whose face was pervaded with smiles;
      He sung high dum diddle,
      And played on the fiddle,
That amiable Man of the Isles. 

-- Edward Lear

Irish folklore tells us that if we travel to Blarney Castle in Country Cork, Ireland, and kiss the famous Blarney Stone, we will be transformed into persuasive speakers-- and perhaps talented poets-- who truly possess the gift of gab. We believe the stories we hear, Poetry Paraders.  After all, why would a leprechaun trick us with nonsense and deceptive talk known as blarney? So Kiss the Blarney Stone and Come up to Limerick... and may you find the rhythm and the rhyme on this fine St. Patrick's Day!