Browsing idly through the bookcase, I came across an old school exercise book in which were numerous poems carefully and clearly hand-written, and all on the subject of fairies. This book belongs to my wife, having been part of her mother's personal effects when she died aged 90 years, some 12 years ago. The book is clearly a labour of love, and many of the poems date back perhaps 70 years. They are poems for children, but they have a delightful innocence which is very appealing.
Who is there that actually enjoys going to the dentist? I suspect that most people go only when they have to, when the pain of raging toothache exceeds the fear of the dentist's surgery. But what would we have done if we had lived in the Middle Ages, or if we live today in those third world countries where there are no dentists? We are truly fortunate in this country where we have access to skilled and qualified dentists, equipped with appropriate drugs and modern technology.....Deo gratias.
Now if you were a fairy .......?
The Fairy Dentist
O did you know the fairies had a dentist of their own?
He's got a little dentist house below an old grey stone.
The fairies love to go there where he works away beneath,
For he's always very gentle with their little pearly teeth.
And he's the greatest dentist man that ever has been seen,
For once he stopped a wisdom tooth of Mab, the Fairy Queen.
The dentist room is quite the prettiest colour ever planned,
With bluey-purple floor like sea, and greeny walls like land.
And when you clamber in the chair and tilt your chin up high,
You'll find the ceilings painted like a lovely sunset sky.
The chair is awf'ly comfy, it's a rocking chair that rocks,
And you sit on lots of cushions made of dandelion clocks.
The arms are made of ivy roots, most splendid things to hold,
And very reassuring when you're wanting to feel bold.
Then there's a toadstool table full of instruments and things,
And several well-trained Bumble-bees, but none of them have stings.
They're sometimes used for little girls, sometimes for little boys,
And when they're working hard, they make a funny, buzzing noise.
And on the toadstool table there's a fairy half-a-crown,
And a box of cotton-wool that's made from finest thistledown.
Some dainty little forceps made of wise old beetles jaws,
And a pot of liquid stuff that smells like summer out of doors.
And if you've got an aching tooth that isn't any good,
A nightingale comes singing from a little poppy wood.
He'll sing you fast and fast asleep, although it is the day,
And when you wake again you'll find your tooth has run away.
Then you say 'Goodbye and thank you very much for asking me,'
And you take the half-a-crown, and then run back home to tea.
So that's why fairies love to go (they'll even go alone)
To the little fairy dentist underneath the old grey stone.
(anon)
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And now, a little piece of musical entertainment...
On Saturday, April 24th, 2010, over thirty members of the Opera Company of Philadelphia Chorus and principal cast members from the upcoming production of La Traviata converged on the Reading Terminal Market Italian Festival.
Wearing street clothes and blending in with the crowd, the artists swung into action as the first orchestral strains of the famous opera were piped through the market, giving a rousing, surprise performance for hundreds of delighted onlookers who were there to enjoy the Italian delicacies and the everyday treats that the Reading Terminal Market has to offer. The four-minute piece drew an overwhelming crowd, and won a thunderous ovation that included both laughter and tears from the audience.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_zmwRitYO3w
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Thoughts from St Alphonsus for every day of the year - compiled by Rev C McNeiry C.SS.R'Some people resemble the hedgehog. They seem all calmness and meekness as long as they remain untouched. But no sooner does a superior or friend touch them, by an observation on something they have done imperfectly, than they forthwith become all prickles' (August 1st).
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Our Lady of Aberdeen pray for us, and guide and protect our Holy Father Pope Benedict XVI.
