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Before the Big Fall

by Seema Shah

This poem takes place
Long before the Big Fall
The one that killed Humpty-Dumpty
You know -- the one from a wall

Humpty-Dumpty sat down
So sure he was stable
But when he reached for his fork
He slid under the table

He fell to the floor
His head hit the tile
And suffered a crack
Then he rolled for a while

Despite this hard fall
His shell never broke
But his head sure was hurting
And was bleeding some yolk

After this fall
Humpty was shaken
But felt so lucky
That his life was not taken

This made him think
He could conquer it all
So the following week
He climbed to the top of a wall.

© 2003 Seema Shah. Used by permission.