I once met a huge crocodile
Who ate all of his food in small bites
He is the one who told me the tale
Of the eagle afraid of heights
And so many other things said he
No way could I write them all down
I must say that I learned quite a bit that day
As I sat next to him on the ground
He talked very quickly, I had on me no pen
And to find one I had not the time
So to help me remember he did me a favor
And he spoke all his words with a rhyme …
“The tiger who lived with the lions
Never knew that he was striped
If you get your news from a busy bee
You should know it’s a bit over-hyped
The hyena spends much time amused
Because everyone thinks he’s a dog
And if you want to out-run a cheetah
Simply challenge him to a jog
It’s the cobra who’s king of the jungle
The lions live too far away
Elephants are really quite colorful fellows
Despite being so plain and gray
The hummingbird forgets the words
No matter how hard he tries
And while ladybugs are pretty and cute
Remember … half of them are guys
Once I swam to the coast and had lunch
With a shark who had swum up stream
He told me that since he’d never slept
He had never had a bad dream
Most fish are pretty good students
Though they’ve never heard of the rain
Zebras say that they all dream in color
And they think of most horses as plain
The rhinos say almost nothing
They’re the quietest horns in the land
Camels are also surprisingly quick
They train every day in the sand
And a sea turtle once told me something
He said jellyfish aren’t very sweet
But if you’d like a snack that is spicy or hot
They actually make a nice treat
I’ve met many an ant bodybuilder
They all seem to like lifting weights
And teenager bats have it harder than most
For ahead lie many blind dates
Flying squirrels have friends in high places
But the birds still see them as rats
The moose and the deer look handsome with antlers
But they look rather silly in hats
I used to know a gorilla who scowled
But was happy and sung like a lark
And just last week I met a young owl
Who is terrified of the dark
A grizzly bear will do you a favor
For even the tiniest snack
And nobody smiles as big as a whale
When someone finally scratches his back
A beetle once climbed up a tree for three days
Just to stand up high on the top
But upon his triumphant arrival was promptly
Knocked off by a single raindrop
The lightning bugs hate thunder
The foxes don’t have a clue
And nobody anywhere notices
When the flamingo is feeling blue
Most hippos are rude for no reason
I’ve never called one a friend of mine
And between you and me, I think you’ll agree
I would NEVER date a feline
The octopus learned to disguise himself
And fit into the tiniest groove
Because everyone always asks him for help
Whenever it’s time to move
The seals think of themselves as graceful
But on land they move like big slugs
And everyone says (though I’d never ask)
The python gives the best hugs
The lemurs will give you directions
The baboons just some dumb retort
And one time passed by a soft-spoken giraffe
Who compared to his brothers was short.”
And that’s where he paused and yawned
By then we’d been sitting a while
“Come back one day, and I’ll tell you some more.”
Then he vanished out into the Nile