A Wise Old Bird

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  A Wise Old Owl
by Anonymous

A wise old owl lived in an oak
The more he saw the less he spoke
The less he spoke the more he heard.
Why can't we all be like that wise old bird?

 Winter
(From "Love's Labour's Lost")

When icicles hang by the wall,
    And Dick the shepherd blows his nail,
And Tom bears logs into the hall,
    And milk comes frozen home in pail,
When blood is nipp’d and ways be foul,
Then nightly sings the staring owl,
                Tu-whit;
Tu-who, a merry note,
While greasy Joan doth keel the pot.

When all aloud the wind doth blow,
    And coughing drowns the parson’s saw,
And birds sit brooding in the snow,
    And Marion’s nose looks red and raw,
When roasted crabs hiss in the bowl,
Then nightly sings the staring owl,
                Tu-whit;
Tu-who, a merry note,
While greasy Joan doth keel the pot.

I love owls. Sometimes a tawny owl sits on our roof at night and I hear him calling. Click here to listen.   

There's much folklore relating to owls. Click here to discover more. 

Writing prompts:

• Do you know a 'wise old bird'? Write about her or him for a few minutes.
• Write about a time when you have kept quiet and learnt something by simply observing. 
• Think about a difficult situation you are currently facing. What words of wisdom would you offer a friend in the same situation? Write them down.
  
• Shakespeare gives us wonderful selection of cold, wintry images. Draw up your own list of wintry images (look outside at this evening's snowy scene for inspiration) and use it to make a poem.