Wild+Strawberries+by+Shel+Silverstein

I picked “Wild Strawberries,” by Shel Silverstein. Shel is famous because of his many children’s poems and songs. Some of his works are “The Giving Tree,” “Where the Sidewalk Ends,” “A Light in the Attic,” and “Falling Up.” “A Light in the Attic,” and “Falling Up” were New York Times best sellers for 182 weeks in a row. (“Shel silverstein biography,” 2006-2010) Wild Strawberries is a cool poem! Shel Silverstein compares a wild strawberry to a pet. The poem tends to take ideas and words literally as in “a wild strawberry” being wild, as a child might. It includes some odd words such as a “Cowberry, Muleberry, Huntberry, and Watchberry” that a kid might make up also. (Silverstein, 1981)

“Wild Strawberries”- Shel Silverstein

Are Wild Strawberries really wild? Will they scratch an adult, will they snap at a child? Should you pet them, or let them run free where they roam? Could they ever relax in a steam heated home? Can they be trained to not growl at the guests? Will a litterbox work or would they leave a mess? Can we make them a Cowberry, herding the cows, Or maybe a Muleberry pulling the plows, Or maybe a Huntberry chasing the grouse, Or maybe a Watchberry guarding the house, And though they may curl up at your feet oh so sweetly, Can you ever feel that you trust them completely? Or should we make a pet out of something less scary, Like the Domestic Prune, or the Imported Cherry, Anyhow, you’ve been warned and I will not be blamed If your Wild Strawberry cannot be tamed.

References:

Shel silverstein biography. (2006- 2010). Retrieved from http://famouspoetsandpoems.com/poets/Shel_Silverstein/biography

Silverstein, S. (1981). A light in the attic. New York, NY: HarperCollinsPublishers