prose/poem about water

[macpark]

I am trying to find a piece of prose or a poem on the topic "Water, Water"

My daughter who is 9 is entering a public speaking comp at her school and this is the topic. Sje is very articulate so it doesn't want to be too babyish and she would prefer something humerous.

Does anyone have any suggesions?

[JamesEverton]

The Rime of the Ancient Mariner?

[macpark]

Thanks James

I think that it might be a bit too long although I did consider taking the last bit and finishing with water water everywhere etc.

I wondered if there was anything from Wind in the Willows or Swallows and Amazons which would be commensurate with her age but still good prose. Trouble is, I don't have time to start reading them from scratch and I'm not familiar with them to that extent.

[Clanad]

Here's something pithy:
Water

Water is pure,
Water is natural,
Water is healthy,
Water can help all

Water is simple,
Water is free,
Water can help the lives,
The lives of you and me (By Olivia Taylor)

Or:
Bath-Song

Sing hey! For the bath at close of day
that washes the weary mud away
A loon is he that will not sing
O! Water Hot is a noble thing!

O! Sweet is the sound of falling rain,
and the brook that leaps from hill to plain;
but better then rain or rippling streams
is Water Hot that smokes and steams.

O! Water cold we may pour at need
down a thirsty throat and be glad indeed
but better is beer if drink we lack,
and Water Hot poured down the back.

O! Water is fair that leaps on high
in a fountain white beneath the sky;
but never did fountain sound so sweet
as splashing Hot Water with my feet!
(By JRR Tolkien)

Best of luck!

[dannydingbat]

Macpark - I have just written an original poem for your daughter but, to finish off and make it personal, I need to know whose water supply area you live in. When I know this,, I will post the result here

[maxi29]

What about The Brook by Tennyson? ("I come from haunts of coot and fern" etc). I remember reading it first when I was about 8 or 9 and I loved the rhythm of the poem.

Or how about Ducks Ditty from the Wind in the Willows?

"All along the backwater,
Through the rushes tall,
Ducks are a-dabbling,
Up tails all!" etc

[macpark]

Many thanks to all. She particularly likes the poem about recycyled water. Thanks In A Pickle.

I'm intrigued, Dannydingbat!! We are in Wessex Water.

[dannydingbat]

An ode for Macpark;s daughter

Water Water Everywhere

Water, water everywhere, so the saying goes
But there isn�t any, to lubricate my hose
I�m told that in my cistern tank, I should keep a brick
So the precious H2O, will not be used so quick
My lawn is looking brown as toast, my flowers are dead, I�m betting
I must save my bathwater, to give my plants a wetting
They reckon that recycling, is the way to go
Don�t we do that already, to help maintain the flow?
We flush the toilet, down it goes, to the sea I think
Swiftly followed by the stuff that�s been in the sink
The sun comes out, the ocean warms, the vapours quickly rise
The clouds fill up, then go dark and rain falls from the skies
It runs down hills to reservoirs, the place where it�s collected
It�s fed through pipes to people�s homes, with which they�re connected
We turn a tap and take a drink or dishes we�ll de-stain
Then send it down the waste-pipe so it goes round again
That doesn�t make me feel so good, now I know the score
That the stuff I need to live has all been drunk before!
But there�s one thing that worries me, if I care to think
If Wessex sups my wastage, what will my garden drink?

(I had a rough week at work and needed a diversion to get my head right again. I usually write poetry!!)

[macpark]

Many many thanks Dannydingbat. It's charming!

Now we are spoiled for choice. We also have the beautiful passage from Wind in the Willows where Mole sees the river for the first time.

[Ward-Minter]

well being a Beach Boys fan the end of this song is great.

cool cool water

And this one is about water polution

don't go near the water.