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viewsIf I Were in Charge of the World
By Charlene Ross, Monday, July 26, 2010, 5 commentsI love to read, especially books with beautifully written prose. Oh if only I could write like Lori Lansens, Ann Patchett, Khaled Hosseini, Marcus Zusak, Anne Lamott, Elizabeth Gilbert or Kim Robinson. What baffles me is I have a few friends who really like to read but have no appreciation of prose or style.
One girlfriend said to me recently, “I have no use for all that descriptive style and well written prose. I just want a juicy story. Get to the good stuff already.”
Of course she admittedly reads what she calls porn. Desperate housewife smut. Something for everyone right? (And thank God for that because if everyone only loved literary fiction like I do no one would ever buy my book. You know, when I finish it.)
My kid’s both had an amazingly awesome 4th grade teacher. So far she is the only teacher they’ve shared. One of the (many) things I really love about her is her great love of beautifully written prose and of children’s poetry. She did an assignment for Open House based on the poem If I Were in Charge of the World by the wonderfully talented children’s writer Judith Viorst. The children changed the words to the poem to fit their own personalities and wrote what they would do if they were in charge of the world. I loved reading how all the kid’s poems were vastly different, yet at the same time in many ways very much the same.
I think it’s a fantastic assignment where children can use their imagination to create a poem to tell how they can make the world better. I realize that she is not the only teacher in the world to do this (there is after all a lesson plan and template on the Internet for this assignment) but I still like to think of my children’s 4th grade teacher as brilliant.
Chandler’s poem has been misfiled. I have his schoolwork from preschool through 5th grade. No, not all of it - just certain pieces that seemed worth keeping. Artwork, reports, books of poetry – things like that. But for some reason 4th grade is completely missing. Not one thing. I really don’t wonder where my children get their organizational (or rather lack of organizational) skills from. Even though I can’t find Chandler’s poem, or remember what he wrote four years ago, trust me, it was awesome. (I mean I have to say that right? I’m his mom!)
To read Judith Viorst’s original poem click here.
Here is Marley’s poem…
If I were in charge of the world
I’d cancel flies, homework,
And also pincher bugs.
If I were in charge of the world
There’d be no bad economy,
No more war, more fun and
More time for amazing TV.
If I were in charge of the world
You wouldn’t have pain.
You wouldn’t have cancer.
You wouldn’t have death.
Or “Don’t forget to do your homework!”
You wouldn’t even have homework.
If I were in charge of the world
A sundae would be a vegetable.
All badness would be goodness.
And a person who sometimes forgot to do her schoolwork,
And sometimes forgot to feed her dog
Would still be allowed to be in charge of the world.
And just for fun I wrote one of my own. I couldn’t decide if I wanted to make it funny or serious, so it’s a little of both. (I hope.)
If I were in charge of the world
I’d cancel intolerance and hatred,
Wars,
Fat clothes, and also Sarah Palin.
If I were in charge of the world,
There’d be more time to read books,
More time to sit on the beach and watch the waves,
More time to dance and drink wine with my friends, and
Just more time.
If I were in charge of the world
You wouldn’t have pollution.
You wouldn’t have heart attacks or car accidents.
You wouldn’t have to know what it’s like to lose someone you love.
Or “Don’t fight with each other!”
You wouldn’t even have kids that fight with each other.
If I were in charge of the world
A hamburger would be a vegetable.
All designer clothes would be affordable and look good on me.
And a person who sometimes yells at her kids
And always seems to be unorganized and running late
Would still be allowed to be
In charge of the world.
What would you do if you were in charge of the world?
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5 Comments
hmmmm
charlene,
i loved marley's peom..your too.
if i were in charege of the world i would give it to someone else cuz i think i just want to chill and breathe!!!!
oxo
wolffie
Charlene, I love Marley's
Charlene,
I love Marley's poem- you schould be so proud - some of the lines blew me away - No more war, and
Well...Fat clothes and Sarah Palin were mine...
Though I think Marley would cancel SP too! But yes, she is AWESOME - thank you!
And I should have said Margaritas would be a vegetable- now that's the kind of world I want to be in charge of!
Margaritas are grown in my
~~~~Charlene, your son is
~~~~Charlene, your son is indeed his mother's child. What a great, insightful poem!
Change the world? Where does one begin? Wow.
Peace on Earth. No Death. No Suffering. Heaven on Earth. Love. Love. Love. If everybody could just love one another..... (Oh, and I'd like Chocolate as a vegtable)
Kisses xxx Great blog.
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