Winnie-The-Pooh and All, All, All

at all?'

'Hardly at all,' said Kanga.

'Oh!' said Pooh.

'Roo, dear, just one more jump and then we must go home.'

There was a short silence while Roo fell down another mouse-hole.

'Go on,' said Rabbit in a loud whisper behind his paw.

'Talking of Poetry,' said Pooh, 'I made up a little piece as I was coming along. It went like this. Er – now let me see – '

'Fancy!' said Kanga. 'Now Roo, dear – '

'You'll like this piece of poetry,' said Rabbit.

'You'll love it,' said Piglet.

'You must listen very carefully,' said Rabbit.

'So as not to miss any of it,' said Piglet.

'Oh, yes,' said Kanga, but she still looked at Baby Roo.

'How did it go, Pooh?' said Rabbit.

Pooh gave a little cough and began.

LINES WRITTEN
BY A BEAR OF
VERY LITTLE BRAIN
–
On Monday, when the sun is hot
I wonder to myself a lot:
'Now is it true, or is it not,'
'That what is which and which is what?'
On Tuesday, when it hails and snows,
The feeling on me grows and grows
That hardly anybody knows
If those are these or these are those.
On Wednesday, when the sky is blue,
And I have nothing else to do,
I sometimes wonder if it's true
That who is what and what is who.
On Thursday, when it starts to freeze
And hoar-frost twinkles on the trees,
How very readily one sees
That these are whose – but whose are these?
On Friday -

'Yes, it is, isn't it?' said Kanga, not waiting to hear what happened on Friday. 'Just one more jump, Roo, dear, and then we really must be going.'

Rabbit gave Pooh a hurrying-up sort of nudge.

'Talking of Poetry,' said Pooh quickly 'have you ever noticed that tree right over there?'

'Where?' said Kanga. 'Now, Roo – ' 'Right over there,' said Pooh, pointing behind Kanga's back.

'No,' said Kanga. 'Now jump in, Roo, dear, and we'll go home.'

'You ought to look at that tree right over there,' said Rabbit. 'Shall I lift you in, Roo?' And he picked up Roo in his paws.

'I can see a bird in it from here,' said Pooh. 'Or is it a fish?'

'You ought to see that bird from here,' said Rabbit. 'Unless it's a fish.'

'It isn't a fish, it's a bird,' said Piglet.

'So it is,' said Rabbit.

'Is it a starling or a blackbird?' said Pooh.

'That's the whole question,' said Rabbit. 'Is it a blackbird or a starling?'

And then at last Kanga did turn her head to look. And the moment that her head was turned, Rabbit said in a loud voice 'In you go, Roo!' and in jumped Piglet into Kanga's pocket, and off scampered Rabbit, with Roo in his paws, as fast as he could.

'Why, where's Rabbit?' said Kanga, turning round again. 'Are you all right, Roo, dear?'

Piglet made a squeaky Roo-noise from the bottom of Kanga's pocket.

'Rabbit had to go away,' said Pooh. 'I think he thought of something he had to do and see about suddenly.'

'And Piglet?'

'I think Piglet thought of something at the same time. Suddenly.'

'Well, we must be getting home,' said Kanga. 'Good-bye, Pooh.' And in three large jumps she was gone.

Pooh looked after her as she went.

'I wish I could jump like that,' he thought. 'Some can and some can't. That's how it is.'

But there were moments when Piglet wished that Kanga couldn't. Often, when he had had a long walk home through the Forest, he had wished that he were a bird; but now he thought jerkily to himself at the bottom of Kanga's pocket,

this

take

'If is shall

really to

flying I never

it.'

And as he went up in the air he said, 'Ooooooo!' and as he came down he said, 'Ow!' And he was saying,