Rosalind Mason

From “Poems of Happiness”

DOWN in time for breakfast!

And a clean green dress,

And my hair

Curled in six—

Three on one side

And three on the other;

And I

Very well washed

All over.

Opposite me is the Baby

With his bib—

Pink

With white elephants on it.

And there is mother

And father;

And we bend our heads

Over our blue plates with oranges.

Our grace is silent—

You can talk that way, you know,

To God,

Though sometimes you have to scream

At Baby—

To make him pay attention

If he is playing, and you want him to come.

After grace is over

I feel quite new

And very clean.