Thursday, November 20, 2014

Limerick Alley: Bridget Magee



For better or worse, American influence has changed the way many holidays are celebrated overseas– Christmas, Easter, Halloween... but not Thanksgiving.  No, Thanksgiving is all ours.

November 27th will be like any other Thursday in Limerick, Ireland. But here on Today's Little Ditty, Limerick Alley is serving up this kind of pub grub:


What's more, we've got an American lass with a fine Irish name to plate up some poetry on the side.  I'm speaking of no other than Bridget Magee, of course.

Bridget has wide-ranging talents, as writer, poet, speaker, teacher, mom– but personally, I think of Bridget as a sister in all things ditty.  With her quirky sense of humor, a pun for every occasion, and our shared tendency toward short verse, who better to make an appearance in Limerick Alley.  You can read more of Bridget's work at her blog wee words for wee ones.

While I never dictate what my guests in Limerick Alley or Haiku Garden should write about, I am pleased that Bridget took it upon herself to write something appropriate for the turkey-gobbling season.  For one thing, it gives me a chance to acknowledge the holiday, since next week I'll be busy wrapping up November's Ditty of the Month Club challenge.

There is someone who is not particularly happy about Bridget's choice of subject matter, however. And that would be this handsome fellow:

"Pre-Thanksgiving Dinner" by Ian McKenzie, Flickr Creative Commons

There once was a turkey named Ty 
Who saw the calendar, "Oh my!  
Almost Thanksgiving?  
I want to keep living!  
Oh how I wish I could fly."
© 2014 Bridget Magee. All rights reserved.

"Turkey Chase" by Lars Hammar, Flickr Creative Commons

Run away, Ty! Run away!


Thank you, Bridget, for this fun little ditty.  And to all of you, whatever is on your table this Thanksgiving (or this Thursday, for my friends abroad), I wish you many blessings of the season, and hope that you know how grateful I am for your support of Today's Little Ditty.  In the words of Der Bingle, I've got plenty to be thankful for.



With mashed potatoes and pumpkin pie crowding our thoughts, don't forget that there's just one week left to submit a monster-inspired haiku for Bob Raczka's DMC challenge.  This week I featured my own haiku as well as monsteriffic little ditties by Penny Parker Klostermann, Susannah Buhrman-Deever, and Diane Mayr.

Be sure to check out the poetry spread at Becky Shillington's Tapestry of Words.  Thanks, Becky, for hosting today's Poetry Friday roundup!



20 comments:

  1. Every year I love seeing all the turkey complaints, and Bridget, you've written a sad one indeed. Thanks, & Happy Thanksgiving to you, & you too, Michelle. It's always a pleasure to visit Limerick Alley.

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    1. So glad you feel that way about Limerick Alley, Linda. :) Happy Thanksgiving to you too!

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    2. Thanks, Linda, poor Ty know too much about Thanksgiving and not enough about aerodynamics. =)

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  2. There once was a turkey named Ty
    who Bridget kindly taught to fly --
    he knocked all the leaves
    from the top of the trees
    as he was waving bye-bye!

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    1. HOORAY!!! Lovely to see Ty soar into the sunset, happily ever after. :)

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    2. Oh, Tabatha, Ty was an excellent student and flew on to better pastures - where there are no calendars! Thank you for your fabulous follow up Limerick! =)

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    3. Yay! I'm glad he could escape. :) Bye-bye, Ty!

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  3. Oh, that Bridget is a sly one. And funny.
    And oh, that Tabatha is quite clever too.
    Please direct our good man Ty to our house, where we'll set him a place. Only TOFURKY under our thatched roof!

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  4. I love Ty the Turkey's limerick lament! Poor guy... Happy Thanksgiving, Michelle!

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  5. Oh my, poor Ty. You've put him in a splendid pickle, Bridget. And so glad that Tabatha came to his rescue.
    Happy Thanksgiving, all!

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    1. Hmmm, turkey with a side of pickle - your brilliant, Buffy! =)

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  6. Thank you, dear Michelle, for featuring my Limerick today. Your lovely description and perfect pictures give Ty and I warm feelings - though mine are not from the preheating oven. You are an amazing poetry advocate and I am proud to share Poetry Friday with you. Happy Thanksgiving to you and yours. =)

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    1. You're very sweet, Bridget-- it was my pleasure. Happy Thanksgiving!

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  7. I assume your turkey is a domestic one, because the wild ones can fly! They roost in trees. I've seen them do it here in NH! Take a look at this short video: http://youtu.be/_FDg0dwMews

    Your limerick is great, by the way, Bridget!

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    1. You know, I was wondering about that, Diane. In my search for pictures I did find a few flying turkeys. When I lived in Needham, MA we had one visit our yard-- don't remember how he got in or out though. I guess I assumed he used the gate. ;)

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  8. I love the way he says oh my. Great turkey poem, Bridget!

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  9. What a team, Bridget and Tabatha! I was on such an emotional roller coaster with this post, first grieving for poor old Ty, and then elated that he'd learned to fly in the nick of time. Hehe. Thanks for the chuckles!

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