The Anthem of the Five Year Old

© 2007 Cindy Middendorf

(Tune: How Much Is That Doggie in the Window)

How much is my childhood treasured?

The one that I’ll never get back…

You can’t rush the laws of Mother Nature,

My brain will just take its own track!

How much of my childhood am I losing

To grown-ups who think they are smart?

You must know I learn best through playing

With movement and music and art.

I promise I’ll learn math and numbers,

I’ll read chapter books to the end,

But this year’s not boot camp for eighth grade,

For now I just want to pretend!

So, please, Teacher, beg Mom and Daddy,

Not to hurry me, scurry, or press,

I just want to play and to be little,

Not a Five Year Old Child with Stress!