Little Boy Blue
(Playing - "Parade of the Wooden Soldiers" by Victor Herbert, from "Babes in Toyland")

The little toy dog is covered with dust,
   But sturdy and stanch he stands;
And the little toy soldier is red with rust,
   And his musket molds in his hands.

Time was when the little toy dog was new,
   And the soldier was passing fair;
And that was the time when our Little Boy Blue
   Kissed them and put them there.

"Now, don't you go till I come," he said,
   "And don't you make any noise!"
So, toddling off to his trundle-bed,
   He dreamt of the pretty toys;

And, as he was dreaming, an angel song
   Awakened our Little Boy Blue ...
Oh! the years are many, the years are long,
But the little toy friends are true!

Ay, faithful to Little Boy Blue they stand,
   Each in the same old place ...
Awaiting the touch of a little hand,
   The smile of a little face;

And they wonder, as waiting the long years through
   In the dust of that little chair,
What has become of our Little Boy Blue,
   Since he kissed them and put them there.

 

~ by Eugene Field
... written about the horrific pain of his own son's death

 

When I was a senior at Chattanooga High School, we were required,
as a proviso of graduating, to memorize either 500 lines
(and recite them to designated listeners) or a narrative,
"The Definition of a Gentleman." I chose the 500 lines, which could,
by the way, include Scripture.

The above poem, "Little Boy Blue," was one of the poems I chose.
The message of the poem is unmistakable and had a deep affect on me.
I have never forgotten this poem and, when I read it or repeat it
to myself, I can still feel those pangs of grief.

 

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