When We Were Very Young - A. A. Milne [1]
Then there is another thing. You may wonder sometimes who is supposed to be saying the verses. Is it the Author, that strange but uninteresting person, or is it Christopher Robin, or some other boy or girl, or Nurse, or Hoo? If I had followed Mr. Wordsworth’s plan I could have explained this each time; but, as it is, you will have to decide for yourselves. If you are not quite sure, then it is probably Hoo. I don’t know if you have ever met Hoo, but he is one of those curious children who look four on Monday, and eight on Tuesday, and are really twenty-eight on Saturday, and you never know whether it is the day when he can pronounce his “r’s.” He had a great deal to do with these verses. In fact, you might almost say that this book is entirely the unaided work of Christopher Robin, Hoo, and Mr. Shepard, who drew the pictures. They have said “Thank you” politely to each other several times, and now they say it to you for taking them into your house. “Thank you so much for asking us. We’ve come.”
A.A.M.
Contents
Corner-of-the-Street
Buckingham Place
Happiness
The Christening
Puppy and I
Twinkletoes
The Four Friends
Lines and Squares
Brownie
Independence
Nursery Chairs
Market Square
Daffodowndilly
Water-Lilies
Disobedience
Spring Morning
The Island
The Three Foxes
Politeness
Jonathan Jo
At the Zoo
Rice Pudding
Missing
The King’s Breakfast
Hoppity
At Home
The Wrong House
Summer Afternoon
The Dormouse and the Doctor
Shoes and Stockings
Sand-Between-the-Toes
Knights and Ladies
Little Bo-Peep and Little Boy Blue
The Mirror
Halfway Down
The Invaders
Before Tea
Teddy Bear
Bad Sir Brian Botany
In the Fashion
The Alchemist
Growing Up
If I Were King
Vespers *
WHEN WE WERE VERY YOUNG
Corner-of-the-Street
Down by the corner of the street,
Where the three roads meet,
And the feet
Of the people as they pass go “Tweet-tweet-tweet—”
Who comes tripping round the corner of the street?
One pair of shoes which are Nurse’s;
One pair of slippers which are Percy’s…
Tweet! Tweet! Tweet!
Buckingham Palace
They’re changing guard at Buckingham Palace—
Christopher Robin went down with Alice.
Alice is marrying one of the guard.
“A soldier’s life is terrible hard,”
Says Alice.
They’re changing guard at Buckingham Palace—
Christopher Robin went down with Alice.
We saw a guard in a sentry-box.
“One of the sergeants looks after their socks,”
Says Alice.
They’re changing guard at Buckingham Palace—
Christopher Robin went down with Alice.
We looked for the King, but he never came.
“Well, God take care of him, all the same,”
Says Alice.
They’re changing guard at Buckingham Palace—
Christopher Robin went down with Alice.
They’ve great big parties inside the grounds.
“I wouldn’t be King for a hundred pounds,”
Says Alice.
They’re changing guard at Buckingham Palace—
Christopher Robin went down with Alice.
A face looked out, but it wasn’t the King’s.
“He’s much too busy a-signing things,”
Says Alice.
They’re changing guard at Buckingham Palace—
Christopher Robin went down with Alice.
“Do you think the King knows all about me?”
“Sure to, dear, but it’s time for tea,”
Says Alice.
Happiness
John had Great Big Waterproof Boots on; John had a Great Big Waterproof Hat; John had a Great Big Waterproof Mackintosh—And that (Said John) Is That.
The Christening
What shall I call
My dear little dormouse?
His eyes are small,
But his tail is e-nor-mouse.
I sometimes call him Terrible John,
’Cos his tail goes on—
And on—
And on.
And I sometimes call him Terrible Jack,
’Cos his tail goes on to the end of his back.
And I sometimes call him Terrible James,
’Cos he says he likes me calling him names….
But