Which Animal Would You Like To Be? comic poem 222 by Angela Lansbury

Angela Lansbury with puppet and soft toy.

Say which animal would you like to be?

I think that's a very silly question

For an adult, even a five-year-old

It's enough to give you indigestion

It's a subtle and rather sneaky way

To find out what you're thinking and feeling

Hoping that you will give yourself away

All answers incriminate, revealing

Another reason's that I could and will

Chenge my evasive, indecisive mind

I'd frame my answer in a nonsense way

But learn to hide thoughts which you cannot find

I'd choose the most suitable animal

To tell the world what I want them to hear

To prove that I'm totally reliable

And ask the questioner, what of you, dear?

I could pick a popular dog or a cat

Cats are independent, find their own food

They are very nice, except to the mice

They are popular, and can soothe your mood

I've no pets, I can't choose an animal

But I used to keep cute tropical fish

But that doesn't mean I'd want to be one

Live just three years, end up as dinner's dish

What lives to seventy, a crocodile

And like sharks it has a lot of white teeth

It has nasty bites, a deceptive smile

No, it's a vicious creature underneath

Insects are too small to get a world view

You could fly high like a singing black bird

But a diet of worms is not for me

Though birds like eating worms, so I've heard

I could be a parrot, or a bird which sings

i think I would fail the sing in tune test

Would I willingly exchange my arms for wings?

Are birds best? I would like to feather my nest

I would love to be a laughing monkey

They look like me and have a lot of fun

They swing through the trees with amazing ease

If they lived longer, I'd like to be one

But, I've decided, a giant tortoise

It lives a hundred years or longer

It carries its house, totally safe

It's calm than me, slower, and stronger

Imagine one day you could go to shop

Check what sleeps on the sand and swims in the sea

Pick your preferred creature, offer to swap

Someone should ask, would it want to be me?

-ends-

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