Friday, January 18, 2013

Poem of the Week

Benny Said, Ruby Said
By J. Patrick Lewis

Benny said
To Ruby Lee,
“M-A-R-R-Y M-E!”
Ruby said,
To Benny,
“Ben, wouldn't
That be F-U-N?”

Benny said,
“My Ruby Lee,
We will W-E-D
Only if you let me K-
I-S-S you
Every day!”

***

This isn't my usual thing in poetry, but I kinda like it. Rhyming poetry, in my head, has a cutesy, childish connotation that it probably doesn't deserve. The best rhymes, in my opinion, are the cleverest, and this poem has clever rhymes in spades.

The spelling game between these two sweethearts serves two purposes. First, it enhances the playful attitude of the poem. Second, it makes room for some really clever rhymes, like the "hidden" rhyme in the first stanza between "Ben" and the "N" in FUN.


1 comment:

Miss Megan said...

I didn't notice the "Ben/N" rhyme until you mentioned it, and now I'm a tad obsessed. So clever!

I'm not always a fan of poetry, but I'm enjoying your choices. Thanks for broadening my horizons a bit, Stephen!