The Man in the Moon
Was a Very Round Man
The Man in the Moon was a very round man,
_And a jolly round man was he,
So he took up his knife and whittled away,
_And whittled his phases with glee.
He whittled in daytime and whittled at night,
_And laughed as the stars did shine,
He laughed till he found that he’d whittled too far,
_And felt in great need of some wine.
The Man in the Moon was as thin as a reed,
_All bent down and weighed down with night,
So he laid down his whittle and waning old head,
_And knew he had put out the light.
“Say, Man in the Moon, you are getting quite slim,”
_Said Cow as she zipped through the sky,
“Come join me with feline and fiddle and all,
_And drink till the sun rises high.”
The Man in the Moon didn’t like his look new
_So he ate, and was waxing in full;
Though he ate so much cheese and drank so much milk,
_His friends thought him oafish and dull.
The Man in the Moon was a very round man,
_And a jolly round man was he,
As the sun peeked her head up right over the hills,
_He rolled off to bed in the sea.
Lauren V. Leon is a pianist, amateur poet, writer, and artist. She resides in Riverside, California, and works as a Catholic parish musician, choir director, and private piano instructor.
Lauren, this is the kind of fable and fantasy that I really love! Just yesterday I was thinking about writing one about the strange relationship of the sun, moon, and earth but this one may have satisfied that urge. How creative and smooth you were in writing this story that should be enjoyed by children and adults alike.
Thank you! I had a great time writing this poem and I am glad that the little astronomy I took years ago has been put to some use. I was inspired by three poems: ‘Hey Diddle Diddle,’ ‘The Man in the Moon Came Down Too Soon,’ and ‘Old King Cole.’
This is a delightful retelling of the story! I love how you brought in “the feline and fiddle and all”. Thank you for the morning fun, Lauren.
Thank you, Cynthia! I am delighted that you enjoyed that line in particular. I will confess to “patting myself on the back” for it.
Pure delight, Lauren, and a tonic in a crazy world. More please!
Thanks, Martin! This poem is perhaps my favorite “nonsense” rhyme that I have written so far, and I am glad that it has acted as a tonic.
Bottles of fun, Lauren. I’m glad to hear of wine, having been a long-time wine-and-cheese aficionada. And with all the craziness, you pass through the phases in regular order. Whittling down, to eat and drink up, is inspired. “Down” being “weighed down with night” so well describes the crescent moon. Great variation on classically entertaining story poems, with careful attention to detail. “Look new” seems strange until we see that “new look” would be wrong because the word at the end of the line must contrast with “full.” No need to satisfy rhyme with “new,” but you get the parallelism–despite the very round curviness of the tale!
This fun take on the old Hey Diddle Diddle nursery rhyme is very enjoyable Lauren. Thank you. It brought a big smile to my face.
I knew it! Those scientists have been having us on all these years.
Thanks for the Carroll-esque fun, Lauren.