A Fellow Adventurer

Outside the sky is gray and a gusty spring rain is falling. A good day to read a book!

I thought I'd start out this blog by sharing a poem I wrote a little over a year ago. Essentially it's my ode to adventure stories. The authors I refer to include Henryk Sienkiewicz, J.R.R. Tolkien, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, Jules Verne, Alexandre Dumas, Robert Louis Stevenson, and Baroness Emmuska Orczy. So, here goes...and welcome aboard, fellow adventurers!


A Prose Poem
By Mary Jessica Woods

Some say that books are “their escape”.

I tend to disagree.

A good book's not a paradise,

Or relaxation spree.

When I pick up a book, do I

Just sit back and enjoy?

No! I'm a fellow adventurer!

Sharing both sorrows and joys.

By Robin Hood's side I crouch and hide,

As he calls to his merry men,

And behind Prince Yeremi I thunder and ride,

Trailing Tartars through steppe and glen.

I weep with the whole of Valinor,

As the elves at the Kinslaying fall,

And chant old riddles with Bilbo,

An untimely end to forestall.

With Sherlock Holmes I observe the world,

A detective's trade to learn,

And with Phileas Fogg I travel it,

Making time at every turn.

The Count of Monte Cristo stands

Aloof in vengeful thought,

I follow the workings of his plans,

The good and the evil they brought.

On Captain Nemo's Nautilus,

I sail 'neath storm-tossed waves,

I set first foot on Lincoln Isle,

And sleep in a granite cave.

With David I tramp 'cross Scotland, keeping

Just one step ahead of the chase,

And with Sir Percy outwit Chauvelin

To vanish without a trace.

So whether in Paris or Baker Street,

Or Middle-earth or Rome,

I always manage to find a place

And a friend with whom to roam!

By Robin Hood's side I crouch and hide,

As he calls to his merry men,

And behind Prince Yeremi I thunder and ride,

Trailing Tartars through steppe and glen!