poetry: a donkey and a diamond

A Donkey And A Diamond
written by Mark Andrew Allen on December 17, 2008

A donkey or a zebra, I wasn't sure which.
To write about next, it just made my head itch.
The donkey you see, is funny, but dumb,
The zebra, on the other hand, was pretty as a plumb.

Well this story it seems, will have to write itself,
I'm not ABOUT to pick, between Santa and his elves.
What a minute. Stop! What happened to the poor donkey?
I was going to pick him, I must have typed the wrong key.

So the donkey it IS, I like this story more,
I think I'll write next, about the boat with no oar.
The donkey, you see, wanted to find out if he,
Could get in the boat with that duck, and cross over the great sea.

Ok, Stop again now! What's up with the duck? Who is he?
Oh, the duck, his name's Chuck, he's a friend of mine, leave him be.
He's a good duck Chuck. You'll be pleased he's here,
Especially in a boat, with no way to steer.

So off they went, Chuck the duck, and a donkey with no name,
On a journey, in a boat, with no oars, to an island we can't name.
The journey it seems, gets interesting quick,
When the boat flipped over, and made both of them sick.

Just at that time, along had come,
A whale to see, what damage was done.
Well the boat was in ruin, no more could it float,
Perhaps the whale would make his back, their new boat.

Well the whale agreed, but she wanted to know,
Where was it exactly, they were trying to go?
Well Chuck was not feeling well, and wanted to find,
Someone that could help him fix, his confused mind.

The donkey laughed, first, then the whale chimed in,
"Are you looking for a Quack?" they said with a grin!
Yeah sort of, I guess, I suppose I want my own voice.
You see ducks are quite smart, and we like to make a great noise.

Fair enough they agreed, and took to the sea.
Chuck put together a roof, from the boat to form a vee.
And off they went, on the back of the whale,
And went miles and miles, until they saw a big sail.

"Pirates!" Chuck said, he's seen of them before,
"Their mean and smell funny, and we won't let them aboard."
The whale said "don't worry, I'll give em a kick,
I'll shove em around, and I'll make them all sick."

It worked pretty well, I'd mostly say,
Well except for one small detail, we sort of got away.
With the pushing of the pirate boat, this way and that,
The captain fell onto OUR boat, with his one eyed-bat.

Off went the pirate boat, ever so quick,
You see mutiny just happened, lickity split.
The mean pirates didn't want him, that's not a good sign,
Now he's here with us, and it's getting dark, it's almost nine!

That scary pirate looked at us all, and wanted to know,
What were we thinking and where were we to go?
Well the duck told his quack story, and everyone laughed.
The next to speak up was, the whale that was our raft.

The whale said she would like, to have a family of her own,
One that she could take care of, not one on a loan.
It was the donkey's turn, he hasn't said much yet,
He said a home is what I would like, if could ever get out of debt.

The Pirate smiled and said, Argh I have just tha right fix,
Listen up, my new mates, if you don't pull any tricks,
I'll agree to take you, to an island not far away,
Where there are diamonds and jewels, and a place we can all stay.

That seemed like an answer, they could all agree,
An island, with pirates and a treasure, just like on tv!
Hmmm, wait just a minute, those mean pirates, I remember them,
Do you suppose they were rushing back home, to work out at the gym?

Probably not the gem you are thinking, the pirate told the three,
I think they will try to find the treasure, but don't worry, I have the key!
Oh how comforting to know, they will risk, life, limb and fin,
With not much of a chance, to beat the pirates and win.

"Worry not", the pirate said, "there are only twenty of them,"
"Twenty you say?" said the donkey, as he cleared his throat of flem,
"What makes you think we can beat pirates, that smell as bad as you?"
The pirate looked at the donkey and said "I thought that was you!"

Yeah, donkeys get a bad rap, it's not really fair,
They're really nice, kinda shy, but as lovable as a bear.
A teddy bear that is, sweet and loyal and always home,
Waiting patiently, sort of smelly, but never a groan.

Then the whale chimed in, and said I hate to bring this up,
But if on land this happens, I can't live in a cup.
I need water to breath, and lots of it, for sure,
I can make this battle happen, if we make it near the shore.

The pirate told them all, to listen up, "here's tha deal,"
He said each of them was seeking something, that was already real,
"The donkey wants a home, he has one with us,
The whale she wants someone to take care of, to deal with the fuss."

"She already has it, you see, she does it so well,
She got us all here with ease, with the whip of her tail.
The duck is okay too, he's in no need of a fix.
he can out smart the pirates, with all of their tricks."

"You all have what it takes, to beat twenty, even more
You've had it all along, now let the world hear you roar!"
The donkey spoke up, and said "wait one more thing,
There are four of us here, don't pirates like tha bling?"

"Yeah, there is that detail, I almost forgot,
Those diamonds and jewels that so many have sought.
Oh wait, You don't want those, that's not what critters want,
A place to stay, there's that hotel, with the nice restaurant."

"Don't worry Mr. Pirate," the donkey said clearly
"We'll help you get your loot and escape, if only barely,
Just one thing I ask, from your treasure of jewels,
I would like a diamond earring, just one, so I can be cool."

Well the pirates attacked with all their might,
And the rest of the story, you can imagine, gets sort of trite.
But that's not quite the end, no not quite yet,
There is one final character we have not yet met.

The story seems so wrapped up, and finished and done,
I know, you are ready to play, and go have some fun.
Just remember this, there was a real quiet one,
Sitting and listening and enjoying the fun.

It's you. You were there at the very beginning,
You saw it all in this imaginary world, where we were really just kidding,
But, if YOU see a donkey on an island with a diamond earring,
You now know the story, but do you know that there is also a meaning?

I sort of borrowed a few things, from a story in a book,
It was the same only different, so I borrowed and I took.
It's a story that's been told, many times before,
I just changed it a little, and then a little more.

Do you know what story I based my this fun adventure on?
It's one that I have always loved, and never made me yawn.
Well, I'll give you a hint, there was four of them seeking things as well,
And it took them on a journey that ended nice, does it ring a bell?

Well, you'll figure it out the connection, there is no doubt,
It was at the end of the story, when the four all finally found out.
They were all seeking things that they really already had
You see, that story needs to be told by good authors and bad.

So that's my version of a story, that I think needs to be told,
To the young ones, and the middle ones, and even the old.
Now you know it too, so tag and your it,
Tell me your version of this story, because I'm done, I quit.


©2008 Mark Andrew Allen

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