Introduction

I would like to dedicate this poem to my aunt Karen, who told me the funniest story about something that happened to her as a child. It was a warm summer day and she was playing on the front porch...

A Tribute To Jimminy Straw-Leg

There once was a grasshopper
nimble and quick,
he had great big eyeballs,
and his legs were like sticks

he spent most days hopping
from hither to yon,
hunting for insects,
to nibble upon

but one day, while snacking,
he made a fatal mistake!
one that would bring forth,
the grasshopper's fate

as he sat on a porch,
munching and chewing,
a little girl spied him
and asked, "WHAT'S that bug DOING?!"

She watched in amazement
as he gobbled his peers,
he felt no remorse,
but the girl was near tears!

He munched and he crunched
first some flies, then some ants,
he crunched and he munched
and this made the girl MAD!

She grew quite annoyed
as the little bug chomped,
"Why that bug is MEAN!"
"Why, he should be STOMPED!"

"He MUST learn a lesson!"
"He MUST understand!"
so she thought for a while,
then came up with a plan...

She said "This'll teach him!"
as the grasshopper fed,
then she took some sharp scissors
and CHOPPED off his leg!

"What's happened here?!"
asked the bug in mid-munch,
"ALL I was DOING,
was having my LUNCH!"

As soon as she'd done it,
the girl felt some relief
that is, 'till she witnessed
the grasshopper's grief

He looked quite annoyed!
and very alarmed!
What HAD he done WRONG?!
Why HAD he been HARMED?!

He was most confused!
heart broken and grim,
as he searched all around
for his missing limb

The poor little hopper,
tried to JUMP! tried to HIDE!
then realized his six legs
were NOW only five

The girl felt quite guilty,
then instantly knew
just what it was,
that she had to do...

So she got an old broom straw
and some Elmer's glue,
glued the straw to his hip,
then said, "Good as new!"

The lame little hopper,
he was NOT amused
about his prosthesis,
still sticky with glue

"I know what I'll do!"
said the girl, with a grin,
"I'll make him my pet!"
"And I'll be his best friend!"

So she put him inside
an old medicine bottle
he couldn't do much,
(except limp and hobble)

The girl named him Jimminy
(though his REAL name was Fred)
and each night she placed him
at the head of her bed

And though he was crippled,
disabled and maimed,
he still kept on hoping,
his faith still remained...

"I SHAN'T give up hope!"
"I SHALL persevere!"
"I have to get out, cause,
my leg's still out there!"

The sad little hopper,
held on for dear life!
he still kept on trying,
through sorrow and strife...

'Till one fateful day
right out of the blue,
the girl and her sister
got in to a feud

The girl's older sister
was meaner than she,
and knew just EXACTLY
what HER plan would be...

She then took the bottle
containing the bug,
and SLAMMED it against
the wall with a THUD!

Poor little Jimminy!
He had not seen it coming!
His eyes, they were crossing!
His brain, it was numbing!

He searched for an answer!
What had caused this attack?!
and then all the sudden,
everything just went black!

Then the little bug smiled,
his pain started to fade,
he saw grasshopper angels
come to take him away

He felt no more sorrow,
he had no regrets,
he'd lived a good life
and he'd paid his debts

He sighed with relief
because he'd done his best
he'd never stopped trying,
and now he could rest

The girl watched in horror,
and then started to cry
her pet had brain-damage,
and right there he died...

Then the girl wiped her tears
she had learned such a lesson!
that little green bug,
had been such a blessin'!

And so here's a tribute,
to that little guy
along with some wisdom,
we ALL should live by...

Life is a gift,
but it's over so fast!
we should live every day
as if it's our last

Live each day to the fullest,
and give it your all!
like the little grasshopper,
with the leg made of straw.....

Copyright; Monica Knight