South Texas Christian Schools Speech Meet 2017-2018: 6th Grade Poetry Anthology, Lecture notes of Poetry

Download South Texas Christian Schools Speech Meet 2017-2018: 6th Grade Poetry Anthology and more Lecture notes Poetry in PDF only on Docsity! 1 Poetry: Grade 6 Index 1 At Breakfast Time 2 Barbara Frietchie 3, 4 Beowulf, an excerpt 5, 6 Birches 7, 8 The Blind Men and the Elephant 9, 10 Castor Oil 11 The Chambered Nautilus 12 The Children’s Hour 13 The Country Mouse and the City Mouse 14 The Creation 15, 16 The Cross Was His Own 17 Daniel Boone 18, 19 First Chorale Ode from Antigone 20 How Do You Tackle Your Work? 21 A Hymn to God the Father 22 If 23 In Times Like These 24, 25 Marco Comes Late 26, 27 Mending Wall 28 Mother’s Ugly Hands 29, 30 the Naming of Cats 31 Nathan Hale 32, 33 No Coward Soul Is Mine 34 One, Two, Three 35 Paradise Lost, an excerpt 36 Peace Hymn of the Republic 37 A Psalm of Life 38 The Real Successes 39 Rereading Frost 40 The Sandpiper 41 The Singer’s Revenge 42 Song 43 The Spider and the Fly 44 To a Waterfowl 45 Vigil Strange I Kept on the Field One Night 46 The Village Blacksmith 47, 48 South Texas Christian Schools Speech Meet 2017-2018 6th Grade Poetry 2 At Breakfast Time Edgar A. Guest My Pa he eats his breakfast in a funny sort of way: We hardly ever see him at the first meal of the day. Ma puts his food before him and he settles in his place An’ then he props the paper up and we can’t see his face; We hear him blow his coffee and we hear him chew his toast, But it’s for the morning paper that he seems to care the most. Ma says that little children mighty grateful ought to be To the folks that fixed the evening as the proper time for tea. She says if meals were only served to people once a day, An’ that was in the morning just before Pa goes away, We’d never know how father looked when he was in his place, ‘Coz he’d always have the morning paper stuck before his face. He drinks his coffee steamin’ hot, an’ passes Ma his cup To have it filled a second time, an’ never once looks up. He never has a word to say, but just sits there an’ reads, An’ when she sees his hand stuck out Ma gives him what he needs. She guesses what it is he wants, ‘coz it’s no use to ask: Pa’s got to read his paper an’ sometimes that’s quite a task. One morning we had breakfast an’ his features we could see, But his face was long an’ solemn an’ he didn’t speak to me, An’ we couldn’t get him laughin’ an’ we couldn’t make him smile, An’ he said the toast was soggy an’ the coffee simply vile. Then Ma said: “What’s the matter? Why are you so cross an’ glum?” An’ Pa ‘most took her head off ‘coz the paper didn’t come. † South Texas Christian Schools Speech Meet 2017-2018 6th Grade Poetry 5 Beowulf, an excerpt Translation by Seamus Heaney In off the moors, down through the mist bands the God-cursed Grendel came greedily loping. The bane of the race of men roamed forth, hunting for a prey in the high hall. Handsomely structured, a sturdy frame braced with the best of blacksmith’s work inside and out. No shielding elder believed there was any power or person upon earth capable of wrecking their horn-rigged hall. Under the cloud-murk Grendel moved towards it until it shone above him, a sheer keep of fortified gold. Spurned and joyless, he journeyed on ahead and arrived at the bawn. The iron-braced door turned on its hinge when his hands touched it. Then his rage boiled over, he ripped open the mouth of the building, maddening for blood, pacing the length of the patterned floor with his loathsome tread, while a baleful light, flame more than light, flared from his eyes. He saw many men in the mansion, sleeping, a ranked company of kinsman and warriors quartered together. And his glee was demonic, picturing the mayhem: Before morning he would rip life from limb and devour them, feed on their flesh; but his fate that night was due to change, his days of ravening had come to an end. For mighty and canny, Hygelac’s kinsman was keenly watching for the first move the monster would make. Nor did the creature keep him waiting but struck suddenly and started in; he grabbed and mauled a man on his bench, bit into his bone-lappings, bolted down his blood and gorged on him in lumps, leaving the body utterly lifeless, eaten up hand and foot. Venturing closer, his talon was raised to attack Beowulf where he lay on the bed; he was bearing in with open claw when the alert hero’s comeback and armlock forestalled him utterly. The captain of evil discovered himself South Texas Christian Schools Speech Meet 2017-2018 6th Grade Poetry 6 in a handgrip harder than anything he had ever encountered in any man on the face of the earth. Every bone in his body quailed and recoiled, but he could not escape. He was desperate to flee to his den and hide with the devil’s litter, for in all his days he had never been clamped or cornered like this. Then Beowulf sprang to his feet and got a firm hold. Fingers were bursting, the monster back-tracking, the man overpowering. The dread of the land was desperate to escape, to take a roundabout road and flee to his lair in the fens. The latching power in his fingers weakened; it was the worst trip the terror-monger had taken to Heorot. And now the timbers trembled and sang, a hall-session that harrowed every Dane inside the stockade. Then an extraordinary wail arose, and bewildering fear came over the Danes. Everyone felt it who heard that cry as it echoed off the wall, a God-cursed scream and strain of catastrophe. The howl of the loser, the lament of the hell-serf keening his wound. Grendel: overwhelmed and manacled tight by Beowulf who of all men was foremost and strongest in the days of this life. † South Texas Christian Schools Speech Meet 2017-2018 6th Grade Poetry 7 Birches Robert Frost When I see birches bend to left and right Across the lines of straighter darker trees, I like to think some boy's been swinging them. But swinging doesn't bend them down to stay. Ice-storms do that. Often you must have seen them Loaded with ice a sunny winter morning After a rain. They click upon themselves As the breeze rises, and turn many-coloured As the stir cracks and crazes their enamel. Soon the sun's warmth makes them shed crystal shells Shattering and avalanching on the snow-crust Such heaps of broken glass to sweep away You'd think the inner dome of heaven had fallen. They are dragged to the withered bracken by the load, And they seem not to break; though once they are bowed So low for long, they never right themselves: You may see their trunks arching in the woods Years afterwards, trailing their leaves on the ground, Like girls on hands and knees that throw their hair Before them over their heads to dry in the sun. But I was going to say when Truth broke in With all her matter-of-fact about the ice-storm, I should prefer to have some boy bend them As he went out and in to fetch the cows-- Some boy too far from town to learn baseball, Whose only play was what he found himself, Summer or winter, and could play alone. One by one he subdued his father's trees By riding them down over and over again Until he took the stiffness out of them, And not one but hung limp, not one was left For him to conquer. He learned all there was To learn about not launching out too soon And so not carrying the tree away Clear to the ground. He always kept his poise To the top branches, climbing carefully With the same pains you use to fill a cup Up to the brim, and even above the brim. Then he flung outward, feet first, with a swish, Kicking his way down through the air to the ground. So was I once myself a swinger of birches. And so I dream of going back to be. It's when I'm weary of considerations, And life is too much like a pathless wood Where your face burns and tickles with the cobwebs Broken across it, and one eye is weeping From a twig's having lashed across it open. I'd like to get away from earth awhile And then come back to it and begin over. South Texas Christian Schools Speech Meet 2017-2018 6th Grade Poetry 10 And so these men of Indostan Disputed loud and long, Each in his own opinion Exceeding stiff and strong, Though each was partly in the right And all were in the wrong! † South Texas Christian Schools Speech Meet 2017-2018 6th Grade Poetry 11 Castor Oil Edgar A. Guest I don’t mind lickin’s, now an’then, An’ I can even stand it when My mother calls me in from play To run some errand right away. There’s things ‘bout bein’just a boy That ain’t all happiness an’joy, But I suppose I’ve got to stand My share o’ trouble in this land, An’ I ain’t kickin’ much—but, say, The worst of parents is that they Don’t realize just how they spoil A feller’s life with castor oil. Of all the awful stuff, Gee Whiz! That is the very worst there is. An’ every time if I complain, Or say I’ve got a little pain, There’s nothing else that they can think ‘Cept castor oil for me to drink. I notice, though, when Pa is ill, That he gets fixed up with a pill, An’ Pa don’t handle Mother rough An’ make her swallow nasty stuff; But when I’ve got a little ache, It’s castor oil I’ve got to take. I don’t mind goin’ up to bed Afore I get the chapter read; I don’t mind bein’ scolded, too, For lots of things I didn’t do; But, Gee! I hate it when they say, “Come! Swallow this—an’ right away!” Let poets sing about the joy It is to be a little boy, I’ll tell the truth about my case: The poets here can have my place, An’ I will take their life of toil If they will take my castor oil. † South Texas Christian Schools Speech Meet 2017-2018 6th Grade Poetry 12 The Chambered Nautilus Oliver Wendell Holmes This is the ship of pearl, which, poets feign, Sails the unshadowed main, The venturous bark that flings On the sweet summer wind its purpled wings In gulfs enchanted, where the Siren sings, And coral reefs lie bare, Where the cold sea-maids rise to sun their streaming hair. Its webs of living gauze no more unfurl; Wrecked is the ship of pearl! And every chambered cell, Where its dim dreaming life was wont to dwell, As the frail tenant shaped his growing shell, Before thee lies revealed, Its irised ceiling rent, its sunless crypt unsealed! Year after year beheld the silent toil That spread his lustrous coil; Still, as the spiral grew, He left the past year's dwelling for the new, Stole with soft steps its shining archway through, Built up its idle door, Stretched in his last-found home, and knew the old no more. Thanks for the heavenly message brought by thee, Child of the wandering sea, Cast from her lap, forlorn! From thy dead lips a clearer note is born Than ever Triton blew from wreathèd horn! While on mine ear it rings, Through the deep caves of thought I hear a voice that sings: Build thee more stately mansions, O my soul, As the swift seasons roll! Leave thy low-vaulted past! Let each new temple, nobler than the last, Shut thee from heaven with a dome more vast, Till thou at length art free, Leaving thine outgrown shell by life's unresting sea! † South Texas Christian Schools Speech Meet 2017-2018 6th Grade Poetry 15 The Creation James Weldon Johnson And God stepped out on space, And He looked around and said, "I'm lonely -- I'll make me a world." And far as the eye of God could see Darkness covered everything, Blacker than a hundred midnights Down in a cypress swamp. Then God smiled, And the light broke, And the darkness rolled up on one side, And the light stood shining on the other, And God said, "That's good!" Then God reached out and took the light in His hands, And God rolled the light around in His hands Until He made the sun; And He set that sun a-blazing in the heavens. And the light that was left from making the sun God gathered it up in a shining ball And flung it against the darkness, Spangling the night with the moon and stars. Then down between The darkness and the light He hurled the world; And God said, "That's good!" Then God himself stepped down -- And the sun was on His right hand, And the moon was on His left; The stars were clustered about His head, And the earth was under His feet. And God walked, and where He trod His footsteps hollowed the valleys out And bulged the mountains up. Then He stopped and looked and saw That the earth was hot and barren. So God stepped over to the edge of the world And He spat out the seven seas; He batted His eyes, and the lightnings flashed; He clapped His hands, and the thunders rolled; And the waters above the earth came down, The cooling waters came down. Then the green grass sprouted, And the little red flowers blossomed, South Texas Christian Schools Speech Meet 2017-2018 6th Grade Poetry 16 The pine tree pointed his finger to the sky, And the oak spread out his arms, The lakes cuddled down in the hollows of the ground, And the rivers ran down to the sea; And God smiled again, And the rainbow appeared, And curled itself around His shoulder. Then God raised His arm and He waved His hand Over the sea and over the land, And He said, "Bring forth! Bring forth!" And quicker than God could drop His hand. Fishes and fowls And beasts and birds Swam the rivers and the seas, Roamed the forests and the woods, And split the air with their wings. And God said, "That's good!" Then God walked around, And God looked around On all that He had made. He looked at His sun, And He looked at His moon, And He looked at His little stars; He looked on His world With all its living things, And God said, "I'm lonely still." Then God sat down On the side of a hill where He could think; By a deep, wide river He sat down; With His head in His hands, God thought and thought, Till He thought, "I'll make me a man!" Up from the bed of the river God scooped the clay; And by the bank of the river He kneeled Him down; And there the great God Almighty Who lit the sun and fixed it in the sky, Who flung the stars to the most far corner of the night, Who rounded the earth in the middle of His hand; This Great God, Like a mammy bending over her baby, Kneeled down in the dust Toiling over a lump of clay Till He shaped it in His own image; Then into it He blew the breath of life, And man became a living soul. Amen. Amen. † South Texas Christian Schools Speech Meet 2017-2018 6th Grade Poetry 17 The Cross Was His Own Author Unknown They borrowed a bed to lay His head, The Christ the Lord came down; They borrowed a donkey in the mountain pass For Him to ride to town. But the crown that He wore And the cross that He bore were His own. He borrowed the bread when the crowd he fed On the grassy mountain side; He borrowed the dish of broken fish With which He satisfied. But the crown that He wore And the cross that He bore were His own. He borrowed the ship in which to sit To teach the multitude; He borrowed the nest in which to rest. He had never a home as crude; But the crown that He wore And the cross that He bore were His own. He borrowed a room on the way to the tomb. The passover lamb to eat. They borrowed a cave, for Him a grave, They borrowed a winding sheet. But the crown that He wore And the cross that He bore were His own. The thorns on His head were worn in my stead. For me the Savior died. For guilt of my sin the nails drove in When Him they crucified. Though the crown that He wore And the cross that He bore were His own. They rightly were mine—instead. † South Texas Christian Schools Speech Meet 2017-2018 6th Grade Poetry 20 First Chorale Ode from Antigone Sophocles Creation is a marvel And man its masterpiece: He scuds before the southern wind Between the loud white-piling swell. He drives his thoroughbreds Through Earth (perpetual Great goddess inexhaustible) Exhausting her each year. The light-balanced light-headed birds He snares; wild beasts according to their kind. In his nets the deep sea fish are caught— O master mind of Man! The free forest animal he herds, The roaming upland deer. The shaggy horse he breaks to yoke The mountain-powered bull. He’s trained his agile thoughts (Volatile as air) To civilizing words. He’s roofed against the sky The javelin crystal frosts The arrow-lancing rains. All fertile in resource He’s provident for all (Not beaten by disease) All but death, and death— He never cures. Beyond imagining he’s wise Through labyrinthine ways both good and bad: He is law-abiding, pious; But displaced when he promotes Unsavory ambition. And then, I want no part with him, No parcel of his thoughts. † South Texas Christian Schools Speech Meet 2017-2018 6th Grade Poetry 21 How Do You Tackle Your Work? Edgar A. Guest How do you tackle your work each day? Are you scared of the job you find? Do you grapple the task that comes your way With a confident, easy mind? Do you stand right up to the work ahead Or fearfully pause to view it? Do you start to toil with a sense of dread Or feel that you’re going to do it? You can do as much as you think you can, But you’ll never accomplish more; If you’re afraid of yourself, young man, There’s little for you in store. For failure comes from the inside first, It’s there if we only knew it, And you can win, though you face the worst, If you feel that you’re going to do it. Success! It’s found in the soul of you, And not in the realm of luck! The world will furnish the work to do, But you must provide the pluck. You can do whatever you think you can, It’s all in the way you view it. It’s all in the start that you make, young man: You must feel that you’re going to do it. How do you tackle your work each day? With confidence clear, or dread? What to yourself do you stop and say When a new task lies ahead? What is the thought that is in your mind? Is fear ever running through it? If so, just tackle the next you find By thinking you’re going to do it. † South Texas Christian Schools Speech Meet 2017-2018 6th Grade Poetry 22 A Hymn to God the Father John Donne Wilt thou forgive that sin where I begun, Which was my sin, though it were done before? Wilt thou forgive that sin, through which I run, And do run still, though still I do deplore? When thou hast done, thou hast not done, For I have more. Wilt thou forgive that sin which I have won Others to sin, and made my sin their door? Wilt thou forgive that sin which I did shun A year or two, but wallow'd in, a score? When thou hast done, thou hast not done, For I have more. I have a sin of fear, that when I have spun My last thread, I shall perish on the shore; But swear by thyself, that at my death thy Son Shall shine as he shines now, and heretofore; And, having done that, thou hast done; I fear no more. † South Texas Christian Schools Speech Meet 2017-2018 6th Grade Poetry 25 our anxieties and care, For doubt and fear are vanquished in THE PEACEFULNESS OF PRAYER † South Texas Christian Schools Speech Meet 2017-2018 6th Grade Poetry 26 Marco Comes Late Dr. Seuss “Young man!” said Miss Block, “It’s eleven o’clock! This school begins promptly at 8:15. Why, THIS is a terrible time to arrive! Why didn’t you come just as fast as you could? What IS your excuse? It had better be good!” Marco looked at the clock. Then he looked at Miss Block. “Excuse?” Marco stuttered. “Er ... Well, it’s like this … Something happened to me. “This morning, Miss Block, when I left home for school, I hurried off early according to rule. I said when I started a quarter past eight I MUST not, I WILL not, I SHALL not be late! I’ll be the first pupil to be in my seat. Then BANG! Something happened on Mulberry Street! “I heard a strange ‘peep’ and I took a quick look And you know what I saw with the look that I took? A bird laid an egg on my ‘rithmetic book! I couldn’t believe it, Miss Block, but it’s true! I stopped and I didn’t quite know what to do. I didn’t dare run and I didn’t dare walk. I didn’t dare yell and I didn’t dare talk. I didn’t dare sneeze and I didn’t dare cough. Because, if I did, I would knock the egg off. So I stood there stock-still and it worried me pink Then my feet got quite tired and I sat down to think. “And while I was thinking down there on the ground, I saw something move and I heard a loud sound Of a worm who was having a fight with his wife. The most terrible fight that I’ve heard in my life! The worm he was yelling, ‘That boy should not wait! He MUST not, he DARE not, he SHALL not be late! That boy ought to smash that egg off of his head.’ Then the wife of the worm shouted back—and SHE said, ‘To break that dear egg would be terribly cruel. An egg’s more important than going to school. That egg is that mother bird’s pride and her joy. If he smashes that egg, he’s the world’s meanest boy!’ South Texas Christian Schools Speech Meet 2017-2018 6th Grade Poetry 27 “And while the worms argued ‘bout what I should do A couple big cats started arguing too! ‘You listen to me!’ I heard one of them say, ‘If this boy doesn’t go on to school right away Miss Block will be frightfully horribly mad If the boy gets there late she will punish the lad!’ Then the other cat snapped. ‘I don’t care if she does, This boy must not move!’ So I stayed where I was With the egg on my head, And my heart full off fears And the shouting of cats and worms in my ears. “Then, while I lay wondering When all this would stop, The egg on my book burst apart with a POP! And out of the pieces of red and white shell Jumped a strange brand-new bird and he said with a yell, ‘I thank you, young fellow, you’ve been simply great. But, now that I’m hatched, you no longer need wait. I’m sorry, I kept you till ‘Ieven o’clock. It’s really my fault. You tell THAT to Miss Block. I wish you good luck and I bid you good day.’ That’s what the bird said. Then he fluttered away. And THEN I got here just as fast as I could And that’s my excuse and I think it’s quite good.” Miss Block didn’t speak for a moment or two, Her eyes looked at Marco and looked him clean through. Then she smiled. “That’s a very good tale, if it’s true. Did ALL of those things REALLY happen to you?” “Er ... well,” answered Marco with sort of a squirm. “Not QUITE all, I guess. But I DID see a worm.” † South Texas Christian Schools Speech Meet 2017-2018 6th Grade Poetry 30 He did it all for you and me, But it was not in vain. For, as we view His suffering, We, too, must cry, “Forgive!” For only through His dying love Are we prepared to live. I’m thankful, God, for Mother love Which bravely fought the fire, And for my Jesus’ dying love Which—that love did inspire. † South Texas Christian Schools Speech Meet 2017-2018 6th Grade Poetry 31 The Naming Of Cats T. S. Eliot The Naming of Cats is a difficult matter, It isn't just one of your holiday games; You may think at first I'm as mad as a hatter When I tell you, a cat must have THREE DIFFERENT NAMES. First of all, there's the name that the family use daily, Such as Peter, Augustus, Alonzo or James, Such as Victor or Jonathan, George or Bill Bailey-- All of them sensible everyday names. There are fancier names if you think they sound sweeter, Some for the gentlemen, some for the dames: Such as Plato, Admetus, Electra, Demeter-- But all of them sensible everyday names. But I tell you, a cat needs a name that's particular, A name that's peculiar, and more dignified, Else how can he keep up his tail perpendicular, Or spread out his whiskers, or cherish his pride? Of names of this kind, I can give you a quorum, Such as Munkustrap, Quaxo, or Coricopat, Such as Bombalurina, or else Jellylorum- Names that never belong to more than one cat. But above and beyond there's still one name left over, And that is the name that you never will guess; The name that no human research can discover-- But THE CAT HIMSELF KNOWS, and will never confess. When you notice a cat in profound meditation, The reason, I tell you, is always the same: His mind is engaged in a rapt contemplation Of the thought, of the thought, of the thought of his name: His ineffable effable Effanineffable Deep and inscrutable singular Name. † South Texas Christian Schools Speech Meet 2017-2018 6th Grade Poetry 32 Nathan Hale Francis Miles Finch To drumbeat, and heartbeat, A soldier marches by; There is color in his cheek, There is courage in his eye, Yet to drumbeat and heartbeat In a moment he must die. By the starlight and moonlight, He seeks the Briton’s camp; He hears the rustling flag, And the armed sentry’s tramp; And the starlight and moonlight His silent wanderings lamp. With slow tread and still tread, He scans the tented line; And he counts the battery guns, By the gaunt and shadowy pine; And his slow tread and still tread Gives no warning sign. The dark wave, the plumed wave, It meets his eager glance; And it sparkles ‘neath the stars, Like the glimmer of a lance- A dark wave, a plumed wave, On an emerald expanse. A sharp clang, a steel clang, And terror in the sound! For the sentry, falcon-eyed, In the camp a spy hath found; With a sharp clang, a steel clang, The patriot is bound. With calm brow, and steady brow, He listens to his doom; In his look there is no fear, Nor a shadow-trace of gloom; But with calm brow and steady brow, He robes him for the tomb. In the long night, the still night He kneels upon the sod; And the brutal guards withhold E’en the solemn Word of God! In the long night, the still night, He walks where Christ hath trod. ‘Neath the blue morn, the sunny morn, He dies upon the tree; And he mourns that he can lose But one life for Liberty; And in the blue morn, the sunny morn, His spirit wings are free. But his last words, his message-words, South Texas Christian Schools Speech Meet 2017-2018 6th Grade Poetry 35 One, Two, Three Harry C. Bunner It was an old, old, old lady And a boy that was half-past three; And the way that they played together Was beautiful to see. She couldn’t go running and jumping, And the boy, no more could he, For he was a thin little fellow, With a thin little twisted knee. They sat in the yellow sunlight Out under the maple trees, And the game that they played I’ll tell you Just as it was told to me. It was hide-and-go-seek they were playing, Though you’d never have known it to be— With an old, old, old, old lady, And a boy with a twisted knee. The boy would bend his face down On his one little sound right knee, And he’d guess where she was hiding, In guesses One, Two, Three. “You are in the china closet,” He would cry, and laugh with glee— It wasn’t the china closet, But he still had Two and Three. “You are up in Papa’s big bedroom, In the chest with the queer old key,” And she said; “You are wann and warmer But you’re not quite right,” said she. “It can’t be the little cupboard Where Mama’s things used to be; So it must be the clothes press, Grandma.” And he found her with his Three. Then she covered her face with her fingers, That were wrinkled and white and wee And she guessed where the boy was hiding, With a One and a Two and a Three. And they never had stirred from their places, Out under the maple tree— This old, old, old, old lady And the boy with the lame little knee This dear, dear, dear old lady And the boy who was half-past three. † South Texas Christian Schools Speech Meet 2017-2018 6th Grade Poetry 36 Paradise Lost, an excerpt John Milton Of Man's first disobedience, and the fruit Of that forbidden tree whose mortal taste Brought death into the world, and all our woe, With loss of Eden, till one greater Man Restore us, and regain the blissful seat, Sing, Heav'nly Muse, that, on the secret top Of Oreb, or of Sinai, didst inspire That shepherd who first taught the chosen seed In the beginning how the Heav'ns and Earth Rose out of Chaos; or, if Sion hill Delight thee more, and Siloa's brook that flow'd Fast by the oracle of God, I thence Invoke thy aid to my advent'rous song, That with no middle flight intends to soar Above th' Aonian mount, while it pursues Things unattempted yet in prose or rhyme. And chiefly thou, O Spirit, that dost prefer Before all temples th' upright heart and pure, Instruct me, for thou know'st; thou from the first Wast present, and, with mighty wings outspread, Dovelike sat'st brooding on the vast abyss, And mad'st it pregnant: what in me is dark Illumine; what is low, raise and support; That, to the height of this great argument, I may assert Eternal Providence, And justify the ways of God to men. † South Texas Christian Schools Speech Meet 2017-2018 6th Grade Poetry 37 Peace Hymn of the Republic Henry van Dyke O Lord, our God, Thy mighty hand Hath made our country free; From all her broad and happy land May praise arise to Thee. Fulfill the promise of her youth, Her liberty defend; By law and order, love and truth, America befriend! The strength of every state increase In Union’s golden chain; Her thousand cities fill with peace, Her million fields with grain. The virtues of her mingled blood In one new people blend; By unity and brotherhood America befriend! O suffer not her feet to stray; But guide her untaught might, That she may walk in peaceful day, And lead the world in light. Bring down the proud, lift up the poor, Unequal ways amend; By justice, nation-wide and sure. America befriend! Through all the waiting land proclaim Thy gospel of good-will; And may the music of Thy name In every bosom thrill. O’er hill and vale, from sea to sea, Thy holy reign extend; By faith and hope and charity, America befriend! † South Texas Christian Schools Speech Meet 2017-2018 6th Grade Poetry 40 Rereading Frost Linda Pastan Sometimes I think all the best poems have been written already, and no one has time to read them, so why try to write more? At other times though, I remember how one flower in a meadow already full of flowers somehow adds to the general fireworks effect as you get to the top of a hill in Colorado, say, in high summer and just look down at all that brimming color. I also try to convince myself that the smallest note of the smallest instrument in the band, the triangle for instance, is important to the conductor who stands there, pointing his finger in the direction of the percussions, demanding that one silvery ping. And I decide not to stop trying, at least not for a while, though in truth I'd rather just sit here reading how someone else has been acquainted with the night already, and perfectly † South Texas Christian Schools Speech Meet 2017-2018 6th Grade Poetry 41 The Sandpiper Celia Thaxter Across the narrow beach we flit, One little sandpiper and I, And fast I gather, bit by bit, The scattered driftwood bleached and dry. The wild waves reach their hands for it, The wild wind raves, the tide runs high, As up and down the beach we flit,— One little sandpiper and I. Above our heads the sullen clouds Scud black and swift across the sky; Like silent ghosts in misty shrouds Stand out the white lighthouses high. Almost as far as an eye can reach I see the close-reefed vessels fly, As fast we flit along the beach,— One little sandpiper and I. I watch him as he skims along, Uttering his sweet and mournful cry. He starts not at my fitful song, Nor flash of fluttering drapery. He has no thought of any wrong; He scans me with a fearless eye: Staunch friends are we, well tried and strong, The little sandpiper and I. Comrade, where wilt thou be tonight, When the loosed storm breaks furiously? My driftwood fire will bum so bright! To what warm shelter canst thou fly? I do not fear for thee, through wroth The tempest rushes through the sky: For are we not God’s children both, Thou, little sandpiper, and I? † South Texas Christian Schools Speech Meet 2017-2018 6th Grade Poetry 42 The Singer’s Revenge Edgar A. Guest It was a singer of renown who did a desperate thing, For all who asked him out to dine requested him to sing. This imposition on his art they couldn’t seem to see. For friendship’s sake they thought he ought to work without a fee. And so he planned a dinner, too, of fish and fowl and wine And asked his friends of high degree to come with him to dine. His banker and his tailor came, his doctor, too, was there, Likewise a leading plumber who’d become a millionaire. The singer fed his guests and smiled, a gracious host was he; With every course he ladled out delicious flattery, And when at last the meal was done, he tossed his man a wink, “Good friends,” said he, “I’ve artists here you’ll all enjoy, I think. “I’ve trousers needing buttons, Mr. Tailor, if you please, Will you oblige us all tonight by sewing some on these? I’ve several pairs all handy-by, now let your needle jerk; My guests will be delighted to behold you as you work. “Now, doctor, just a moment, pray, I cannot sing a note; I asked you here because I thought you’d like to spray my throat; I know that during business hours for this you charge a fee, But surely you’ll be glad to serve my friends, tonight, and me?” The plumber then was asked if he would mend a pipe or two; A very simple thing, of course, to urge a friend to do; But reddest grew the banker’s face and reddest grew his neck, Requested in his dinner clothes to cash a good sized check. His guests astounded looked at him. Said they: “We are surprised! To ask us here to work for you is surely ill-advised. ‘Tis most improper, impolite!” The singer shrieked in glee: “My friends, I’ve only treated you as you have treated me.” † South Texas Christian Schools Speech Meet 2017-2018 6th Grade Poetry 45 To a Waterfowl William Cullen Bryant Whither, 'midst falling dew, While glow the heavens with the last steps of day, Far, through their rosy depths, dost thou pursue Thy solitary way? Vainly the fowler's eye Might mark thy distant flight to do thee wrong, As, darkly painted on the crimson sky, Thy figure floats along. Seek'st thou the plashy brink Of weedy lake, or marge of river wide, Or where the rocking billows rise and sink On the chafed ocean side? There is a Power whose care Teaches thy way along that pathless coast,-- The desert and illimitable air,-- Lone wandering, but not lost. All day thy wings have fann'd At that far height, the cold thin atmosphere: Yet stoop not, weary, to the welcome land, Though the dark night is near. And soon that toil shall end, Soon shalt thou find a summer home, and rest, And scream among thy fellows; reed shall bend Soon o'er thy sheltered nest. Thou'rt gone, the abyss of heaven Hath swallowed up thy form; yet, on my heart Deeply hath sunk the lesson thou hast given, And shall not soon depart. He, who, from zone to zone, Guides through the boundless sky thy certain flight, In the long way that I must tread alone, Will lead my steps aright. † South Texas Christian Schools Speech Meet 2017-2018 6th Grade Poetry 46 Vigil Strange I Kept on the Field One Night Walt Whitman Vigil strange I kept on the field one night; When you my son and my comrade dropt at my side that day, One look I but gave which your dear eyes return'd with a look I shall never forget, One touch of your hand to mine O boy, reach'd up as you lay on the ground, Then onward I sped in the battle, the even-contested battle, Till late in the night reliev'd to the place at last again I made my way, Found you in death so cold dear comrade, found your body son of responding laughter, (never again on earth responding,) Bared your face in the starlight, curious the scene, cool blew the moderate night-wind, Long there and then in vigil I stood, dimly around me the battlefield spreading, Vigil wondrous and vigil sweet there in the fragrant silent night, But not a tear fell, not even a long-drawn sigh, long, long I gazed, Then on the earth partially reclining sat by your side leaning my chin in my hands, Passing sweet hours, immortal and mystic hours with you dearest comrade - not a tear, not a word, Vigil of silence, love and death, vigil for you my son and my soldier, As onward silently stars aloft, eastward new ones upward stole, Vigil final for you brave boy, (I could not save you, swift was your death, I faithfully loved you and cared for you living, I think we shall surely meet again,) Till at latest lingering of the night, indeed just as the dawn appear'd, My comrade I wrapt in his blanket, envelop'd well his form, Folded the blanket well, tucking it carefully over head and carefully under feet, And there and then and bathed by the rising sun, my son in his grave, in his rude-dug grave I deposited, Ending my vigil strange with that, vigil of night and battle-field dim, Vigil for boy of responding laughter, (never again on earth responding,) Vigil for comrade swiftly slain, vigil I never forget, how as day brighten'd, I rose from the chill ground and folded my soldier well in his blanket, And buried him where he fell. † South Texas Christian Schools Speech Meet 2017-2018 6th Grade Poetry 47 The Village Blacksmith Henry W. Longfellow Under a spreading chestnut tree The village smithy stands; The smith, a mighty man is he With large and sinewy hands; And the muscles of his brawny arms Are strong as iron bands. His hair is crisp, and black and long, His face is like the tan; His brow is wet with honest sweat, He earns whate’er he can, And looks the whole world in the face For he owes not any man. Week in, week out, from morn ‘til night, You can hear his bellows blow; You can hear him swing his heavy sledge, With measured beat and slow, Like a sexton ringing the village bell, When evening sun is low. And children coming home from school Look in at the open door; They love to see the flaming forge, And hear the bellows roar, And catch the burning sparks that fly Like chaff from a threshing floor. He goes on Sunday to the church And sits among his boys; He hears the parson pray and preach, He hears his daughter’s voice Singing in the village choir, And it makes his heart rejoice. It sounds to him like her mother’s voice, Singing in Paradise! He needs must think of her once more, How in the grave she lies; And with his hard, rough hands he wipes A tear out of his eyes. Toiling—rejoicing—sorrowing, Onward through life he goes; Each morning sees some task begun, Each evening sees it close; Something attempted, something done, Has earned a night’s repose. South Texas Christian Schools Speech Meet 2017-2018 6th Grade Poetry