Pricilla and the Knotty Aardvark
Pricilla, the gorilla was a gentle loving soul,
She was the talk of all the land … a wonder, truth be told;
Six hundred pounds of kindness, wrapped in brown and golden fur,
A magnet for the poor and weak, her heart was sweet and pure.
She helped the poor unfortunates, who struggled through the day,
It mattered not the species … she loved ALL who came her way;
She could not turn a creature down, no matter what their size,
From tiny tree toads, tigers too … orangutans to flies.
Her reputation grew and grew, they came to her in droves,
With minor ailments, broken wings and slivers in their toes;
A break, a bump, a scrape, a scratch … she helped them all to mend,
Throughout the forest she was known as everybody's friend.
Young Arthur lived across the woods and knew Pricilla's name,
He dreamed of some day meeting this gorilla of acclaim;
His nose was long and tapered … measured almost three feet two,
Till one day when he sniffed a feather … up his nose it flew!
See, Arthur was an aardvark with a very special plight,
He needed help to find a cure from sneezing day and night!
They told him to be patient, that he'd sneeze it out in time,
But every sneeze, his nose would stretch …it now reached four foot nine!
When Arthur sneezed, he sprayed a breeze, with such a mighty force,
The other aardvarks gave him room - he'd sneeze till he was hoarse!
His nose would swing and vibrate, twirl in such a frightening way,
They gave him lots of room … Oh my! … 'Twas such a grand display!
Until one day it happened - he was sneezing quite a lot,
When suddenly, he sneezed so hard … his nose went in a knot!!!
He crossed his eyes, looked down his nose, all twisted, kinked and curled,
But nothing that he did would get that knot of his un-twirled.
The others tried to help him, greased his snout and gave a pull,
Took turns at poor old Arthur, but it stayed in tangles still;
They gave up in frustration, that's when Arthur heard a shout,
"You ought to find Pricilla now! I'm sure she'll help you out!"
So Arthur, with his nose in knots, set out upon the trail,
In search of the gorilla that so many creatures hailed;
He had no problem tracing her, they all knew her by name,
Pricilla the gorilla had amassed a lot of fame.
He came upon a clearing at the outskirts of her home,
And stopped in shock at what he saw, and gave a little moan …
There must have been a hundred creatures lined up in a row,
And so he took his place in line, behind them all in tow.
In front of him, a lion stood, a thorn was in his paw;
A rabbit in a sling was just in front of him he saw;
A chimpanzee on crutches hobbled just in front of them,
And on and on the ailments grew … lost sight around the bend.
He waited patiently in line, as others took their turn,
Consulting with Pricilla and the wisdom she had learned;
He almost nodded off until the croc behind him nudged,
"Hey buddy! It's your turn!" and gave young Arthur quite a shove.
He looked ahead and saw her there, a massive gal she seemed,
With eyes as gentle as a lamb, much kinder than he'd dreamed;
"Pricilla, won't you help me please?" The little aardvark begged,
"Most certainly, my long-nosed friend … jump up here on my leg."
"You have quite a predicament!" she laughed and gave a smile,
And with her nimble fingers, the gorilla worked a while;
She traced the loops and gently tugged until the knot was free,
Then "POOF" his nose was straight again! He jumped from off her knee.
"Pricilla, you're amazing!" Arthur yelled for all to hear,
"My nose is straight! The knot is gone!" He gave another cheer!
He danced around and grinned with glee, but what do you suppose?
He plumb forgot that feather that was wedged up in his nose!
He thanked this gentle giant, turned around and raced for home,
But part way there, the forest filled with smoke … he gave a groan.
He heard the beat of stomping feet - he smelled the stench of fear …
"A forest fire!" echoed through the woods from far and near!
Now back a ways, Pricilla heard the frightful news as well,
A fearful mob had gathered 'round, and they began to yell;
"Please help us! Help us!" they all begged, "The smoke is getting thick!"
"Please help us all, Pricilla!" Some were weak and others sick.
She could not leave a soul behind, the flames were drawing near,
And so she mustered up her strength and yelled "Come over here!"
She wrapped a rattlesnake around her neck and gave a twirl,
And propped a raccoon snuggly on her head where he could curl.
She placed a toad on each her ears, a monkey on her back,
A fly upon her nose, and on her chest, two wombats sat;
A tiger grabbed around her waist and held on from behind,
"I think that's all the room I have!" she said to those in line.
But one by one, they scrambled on, two cheetahs grabbed her knees,
And on the monkey's back, there jumped three rabbits and some fleas;
A parrot landed on the coon, a hummingbird then hopped,
Some lizards, ants and spiders crawled until they reached the top.
"The flames are getting closer!" someone yelled from far away,
Pricilla said "Just grab the tiger's tail! We're on our way!"
The injured and the frightened formed a line behind her then,
A panther grabbed the tiger's tail, with no more time to spend.
Behind him, formed a lengthy line, a deer and crocodile,
A bat, a boar, a wildebeest, some zebras and an owl;
It went on for an endless way, till someone yelled, "That's all!"
"Let's go Pricilla!" echoed through the line, from big to small.
Pricilla flexed her muscles, tried to take a step ahead,
It was a mighty effort, and the weight filled her with dread;
She must have had five thousand pounds of creatures holding on,
And all would perish there … unless Pricilla could go on.
She bared her teeth, she tried again, she raised her leg and stepped,
While fear and terror came from far behind her as they wept,
Now fortified by frightened pleas, she raised her other leg,
And somehow, sweet Pricilla the gorilla moved ahead.
She dragged them for what seemed like miles, but really it was not,
They hadn't gotten out of danger, flames were growing hot;
She knew she couldn't carry on, she had to sit and rest,
She plopped down for a moment, tried her best to catch her breath.
They gathered 'round Pricilla, as their fate was drawing near,
They huddled as the flames came closer, filling them with fear;
Pricilla raised herself again - they all climbed back on board,
To form their train behind this big gorilla they adored.
Then suddenly Pricilla spied young Arthur up ahead,
He seemed a bit disoriented, "Over here!" she said.
As Arthur heard the friendly voice he turned around to see,
The sickly group had formed a chain in their attempt to flee.
He ran toward Pricilla; saw her straining through the smoke,
"I'll carry someone if you like," the little aardvark spoke;
She smiled at him, and then bent down, and passed the lizards on,
The ailing spiders, hummingbird and parrot moved along.
They rested on young Arthur as they forged through all the heat,
Pricilla kept a steady pace, she'd not admit defeat;
But then the aardvark stumbled, did a summersault with flair,
His passengers went topsy-turvy, flying through the air!
Pricilla stopped to pick them up, but as she did … she froze,
The parrot with a broken wing, had landed on his nose;
He'd sniffed up two more feathers, adding to the one inside,
And as he breathed, they tickled him, "Are you OK?" she cried!
He stood up, yelled through squeaks and groans, "Take cover everyone!"
His nose began to vibrate, as it twitched and twirled and swung.
The parrot hopped off Arthur when his nose began to sway,
But no one knew what Arthur did … a sneeze was on it's way!!!
They watched him sputter, squirm and snort … he chortled and he sighed,
His eyes began to water … couldn't stop it, if he tried!
The creatures fell down to the ground, Pricilla plunked down too,
As Arthur gasped one final breath, and blew a big … "ATCHOOOOOOOOOO!"
It roared as loud a thunder, sent a shock wave through the air,
A hurricane of slime and goo went blasting everywhere!!!
It flew a mile in all directions, landing all around …
On tops of trees, on all the creatures, covering the ground!
The air grew still, an eerie calm descended on the land,
Pricilla opened up her eyes and to and fro she scanned;
The flames had all been smothered, and the smoke had blown away,
"You've done it Arthur! Look around! You saved our lives today!"
The aardvark opened up his eyes, to growing, loud applause,
He heard the cheers and laughter, from the beaks and claws and paws;
He crossed his eyes, looked down his nose, all twisted, kinked and curled,
His nose was in the biggest knot he'd seen in all the world!
Pricilla stood beside him, as the crowd around them cheered,
Applauding the gorilla and the aardvark they revered,
"I don't deserve this." Arthur sighed, "YOU went the extra mile."
"I only sneezed by accident!" … but wise Pricilla smiled.
"There are no accidents, my friend - you came to me this way."
"I touched your life, and in return, you saved us ALL today."
"It's good to help another when you can … you never know …"
"The one you help today, just might become your OWN hero!"
She hugged his nose, and kissed his knot … "Let's tackle this again."
Pricilla tapped her knee and winked … "Come here my knotty friend."