 | Rhymes and jingles by Mary Mapes Dodge |  |
12
Little Jo's Compliment
Once in a lifetime something comes
So cheery and bright that it really hums;
Sweet to remember as years go by,
With joy and love in it: that is why.
So cheery and bright that it really hums;
Sweet to remember as years go by,
With joy and love in it: that is why.
You see it was this way: Little Jo,
My own dear darling from top to toe,
Not because of a way she had—
Not because she was good or bad—
Or anything charmingly so and so,
But only just because she was Jo—
Well, she and I one beautiful day
Were watching some merry children play.
'Twas a romping, gay, light-hearted band;
But Baby Jo slipped her little hand
In mine, and whispered: “Now, couldn't we go
Somewhere and play by ourselves, you know?
They're nice and good, but you and me—
Our play is so diff'rent, don't you see!”
My own dear darling from top to toe,
Not because of a way she had—
Not because she was good or bad—
Or anything charmingly so and so,
But only just because she was Jo—
Well, she and I one beautiful day
Were watching some merry children play.
'Twas a romping, gay, light-hearted band;
But Baby Jo slipped her little hand
In mine, and whispered: “Now, couldn't we go
Somewhere and play by ourselves, you know?
They're nice and good, but you and me—
Our play is so diff'rent, don't you see!”
Whether young or old, when you start to play
With a little tot, you should feel “her way.”
And so I did. Years were quite forgot.
I was six to her six—yet, six to a dot.
And when she added: “They're happy. Let's run!”
We slipped away, and we had great fun.
And that was all. But now you know
Why I was made happy by little Jo.
For she without knowing all it meant
Had paid me a precious compliment.
With a little tot, you should feel “her way.”
And so I did. Years were quite forgot.
I was six to her six—yet, six to a dot.
And when she added: “They're happy. Let's run!”
We slipped away, and we had great fun.
13
Why I was made happy by little Jo.
For she without knowing all it meant
Had paid me a precious compliment.
| Rhymes and jingles by Mary Mapes Dodge | |