THE MARVELOUS BUBBLE by Shura Saul Once a lovely bubble grew From a pipe that two boys blew Such a pretty bubble, too- Pink and purple, green and blue Where do flying bubbles go? The two little brothers wanted to know Their eyes were wide and they could not say Where bubbles go when they fly away And then and there, they decided to Follow the bubble and see where it flew "Let's chase it," cried the older brother "Let's not even blow another. "Come, we'll follow up and down "This lovely bubble through the town." Little brother dropped his pipe Gave his soapy hands a wipe Then the two joined hands to run After the bubble. Oh, what fun! First it flew high in the air Two little boys can't quite get there... But four little eyes could watch it fly Rising gently to the sky Then a little wind came flowing Sent the bubble eastward blowing Like a sailboat in the breeze The bubble changed its course with ease And it happened that there stood A lovely tree of maple wood The bubble danced its way along Within the branches, brown and strong When suddenly...up the trunk of the tree A squirrel slid with a hop Then the boys worried, "Oh dear me "Now surely that bubble will pop!" But wonder of wonders, that moment was picked By the squirrel to give his tail a flick The bushy gray tail, as soft as a brush, Sent our bubble afloat again with a rush. Over and over and over it tumbled Like a great golden bee it browsed and it bumbled Over trolleys and trucks as they rattled and rumbled Again the boys worried ."Surely now it will crumble !" Well...it paused for a moment to hang over a pen Where a sweet little baby lay sleeping- and then (Oh- how lovely the colors of violet and rose...) It fell gently and softly on baby's pink nose. The boys held their breath "Will the baby awake? "Reach out her hands the bubble to take? "Is this then the end of our bubble so gay? The end of our bubble chase for today?" But no...baby's not waking...not even stirring She lies in her play pen at ease But- look out now- the bubble is tickling And baby is going to sneeze! Up flew the bubble with a jerk and a jump Away it went galloping...bumpety-bump. A little dog sitting out in his yard Wanted that bubble and tried real hard He leaped and he barked, hoping to play But the bubble just rolled on its own merry way. Up in the air again, higher and higher Almost as high as the telephone wire A little bird pecked at it, couldn't quite catch it (The little boys held their breath as they watched it.) Then down again came the lovely round things A little bird saw it and started to sing Slowly it floated down, seeming to try To touch a gray pussy cat that came walking by. Those two pairs of eyes watched their bubble Get in and out of all sorts of trouble Bumping a wagon, bumping a horse Then whirling and twirling and changing its course. And the two brothers began to believe That it never would finish its motion A little bit weary, they stood and they wondered "Will it roll itself clear to the ocean?" And just as it seemed so, they stood stock still The chase had ended, as all chases will The bubble, growing both faster and bolder Had crashed against a tall man's shoulder. Sorrowfully, the two pairs of eyes Looked up at the man. Oh- what a surprise! Together, bubble and boys had ended their race For over that shoulder smiled their own daddy's face! Daddy smiled down at his two little boys So far from home, from mommy from toys Carried them home without any trouble To tell mommy the story of the marvelous bubble.