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(5) "CELEBRATION" THE LOST DOLL
by kendrive @ 2006-01-30 - 11:29:07

I am working through all 40 of the poems I have selected for my presentation of "Celebration". You will note that I have started giving them numbers.

I have covered "Birth" and now move on to the next category, "Childhood", with this poem from "The Water Babies", by Charles Kingsley.

It was a favourite of my mother and she recited it to all her young children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren - sitting enraptured on her lap or at her feet.

I think it was possibly the only poem she knew by heart and it still brings back fond memories to me.

bru doll

THE LOST DOLL

I once had a sweet little doll, dears,
The prettiest doll in the world;
Her cheeks were so red and so white, dears,
And her hair was so charmingly curled.
But I lost my poor little doll, dears,
As I played in the heath one day;
And I cried for more than a week, dears,
But I never could find where she lay.

I found my poor little doll, dears,
As I played in the heath one day:
Folks say she is terribly changed, dears,
For her paint is all washed away,
And her arms trodden off by the cows, dears
And her hair not the least bit curled:
Yet for old sakes' sake she is still, dears,
The prettiest doll in the world.

Charles Kingsley, 1819-1875

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andrea [Visitor]

24/05/06 @ 09:37

THE LOST DOLL

I love this little poem by Charles Kingsley, i have spent 8 years trying to find it and not knowing who wrote it, until i found this site;
My poor mother now dead used to recite it to me when i was young, such sweet memories, a true childs poem;
I recall it giving me thought to look after what you have, i as a child, once lost one of my own dolls and i think i felt for my own (little doll dears) life, almost as much as if i had lost a person/loved one.

So glad i found this site, thankyou,
Andrea from Derby, England*****

BuffyForgham [Visitor]

07/10/07 @ 22:46

Thankyou so much for enabling me to read this poem and learn of it's origins. It is a poem which has haunted me since childhood in a sad melancholic sort of way and yet has always been a mystery in terms of where it came from or who wrote it. My mother, now 89 years old, used to recite it to me, from memory, when I was a curly headed three year old. She would say it with such tenderness and passion,it made me cry every time. I still choke back the tears when I think of it. I was never sure if I remembered the words correctly - but now I know I did. Whenever I have asked mother about it, she has always said she doesn't remember where she learned it and her memory of the words has faded. Now I will be able to tell her where it came from. Strangely enough I did read the water babies in my childhood - it was one of my favourite books and I remember most of the characters but strangely, I don't remember this poem being part of the story. I'll have to read it again!

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kendrivekendrive pro
07/10/07 @ 23:15

I am so pleased to have helped you - also grateful that you have paged so far back on my poetry blog.

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Linda from Hull now in Newcastle born 1947 [Visitor]

13/10/07 @ 19:31

My mother also used to tell me this poem by heart and I found it on Google tonight as I wanted to tell it to my grandchildren.

I used to read the Water Babies to my children but I had forgotten the poem was in there. My children loved the Water Babies and reading about Mrs Doasyouwouldbedoneby and Mrs Bedonebyasyoudid.
I will look at more of your Celebration poems now.
Thank You

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kendrivekendrive pro
13/10/07 @ 19:47

The poem seems to strike a chord with many people and continues to be handed down through the generations.

I hope you like some of the others in "Celebration"

Please check my daily blogs. I m sure you will find more to enjoy.

Add comments when you can.

Regards

Colin (kendrive|)

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