Saturday night we had a surprise party for my almost 16-year-old daughter. Yesterday, I read the poetry collection A Dazzling Display of Dogs, by Betsy Franco, illustrated by Michael Wertz (Tricycle Press, 2011), guaranteed to make any dog lover smile (and probably most non dog-lovers, too).
I love it when poems connect to my real life in an obvious, immediate way. Saturday night, Jack got into party treats of some kind. He was not feeling good.
Neither was I as I washed his bed and blankets the next morning.
But I did have to laugh as I read "Baloo Got Out."
Baloo Got Out
Baloo got out!
Baloo got out!
Baloo raced out the gate.
He went inside Ms. Johnston's house
and this is what he ate:
Some popcorn
and an apple,
a cupcake
and a steak.
A teddy bear,
a grapefruit peel,
a green organic shake.
Some coffee grounds,
the cat food,
a taco
and some peas,
an apricot,
a home-made tart,
and some moldy cheddar cheese.
I hear Ms. Johnston yelling.
I guess we're all too late.
Baloo got out! Baloo got out!
He'll have a bellyache!
–Betsy Franco, all rights reserved
Poem Starter: Write a list poem about what your pet might eat if he or she got out. If you don't have a pet, imagine if you had a really unusual one, like an orca or a rhino!