Thursday, November 15, 2007
Duck!
Most people don't know this, but I once had the lead in the school play. That's right, I played the title character in Mrs. Sissick's kindergarten presentation of "Little White Duck". I remember many details about it: I remember being asked if I wanted the part. I remember my construction paper costume which consisted of a white hat with an orange bill and green eyes. I remember squatting down and flapping my arms like a duck. I remember in the play that the duck was visited by all of his friends from the pond: A frog. A bug. A snake. I remember the other characters coming on stage and running around me one by one. And I remember thinking that since I was the only person on stage during the entire production, I must be the star.
Oddly enough, the one thing I don't remember about the play is the song itself. I remember one line "Little white duck, sitting in the water..." And that's it. Well thanks to the miracle of the internet I thought I would try to jar my memory a bit by looking up the song.
There's a little white duck sitting in the water
a little white duck doing what he oughter
he took a bite of a lily pad
flapped his wings and he said "I'm glad
I'm a little white duck sitting in the water
quack! quack! quack!"
Doesn't ring a bell but it makes sense. The song continues:
there's a little green frog swimming in the water
a little green frog doing what he oughter
he jumped right off of the lily pad
that the little duck bit and he said "I'm glad
I'm a little green frog swimming in the water
ribbit! ribbit! ribbit!"
Yup, there's the frog, just like I remember.
there's a little black bug floating on the water
a little black bug doing what he oughter
he tickled the frog on the lily pad
that the little duck bit and he said "I'm glad
I'm a little black bug floating on the water
bzzz! bzzz! bzzz!
In my mind, the bug was specifically a fly, but it still fits in with my memory. Now all that's left is the snake:
there's a little red snake playing in the water
a little red snake doing what he oughter
he frightened the duck and the frog so bad
he ate the bug and he said "I'm glad
I'm a little red snake playing in the water
hiss! hiss! hiss!
Woah woah woah. The snake ATE the bug?! What kind of horrible children's song is this? I definitely don't remember anything like that happening. Maybe the last verse provides a happy ending.
now there's nobody left sitting in the water
nobody left doing what he oughter
there's nothing left but the lily pad
the duck and the frog ran away, I'm sad
'cause there's nobody left sitting in the water
boo! hoo! hoo!
This is a TERRIBLE story! I was in kindergarten long before the PC Police started sanitizing everything so I doubt we sang an edited version. It's no wonder my brain blocked out all of the lyrics. Maybe all of my neurosies come from the repressed memory of having to perform this twisted tale. Perhaps it's best that my theatrical career was short-llived.
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Most people don't know this, but I once had the lead in the school play. That's right, I played the title character in Mrs. Sissick's kindergarten presentation of "Little White Duck". I remember many details about it: I remember being asked if I wanted the part. I remember my construction paper costume which consisted of a white hat with an orange bill and green eyes. I remember squatting down and flapping my arms like a duck. I remember in the play that the duck was visited by all of his friends from the pond: A frog. A bug. A snake. I remember the other characters coming on stage and running around me one by one. And I remember thinking that since I was the only person on stage during the entire production, I must be the star.
Oddly enough, the one thing I don't remember about the play is the song itself. I remember one line "Little white duck, sitting in the water..." And that's it. Well thanks to the miracle of the internet I thought I would try to jar my memory a bit by looking up the song.
There's a little white duck sitting in the water
a little white duck doing what he oughter
he took a bite of a lily pad
flapped his wings and he said "I'm glad
I'm a little white duck sitting in the water
quack! quack! quack!"
Doesn't ring a bell but it makes sense. The song continues:
there's a little green frog swimming in the water
a little green frog doing what he oughter
he jumped right off of the lily pad
that the little duck bit and he said "I'm glad
I'm a little green frog swimming in the water
ribbit! ribbit! ribbit!"
Yup, there's the frog, just like I remember.
there's a little black bug floating on the water
a little black bug doing what he oughter
he tickled the frog on the lily pad
that the little duck bit and he said "I'm glad
I'm a little black bug floating on the water
bzzz! bzzz! bzzz!
In my mind, the bug was specifically a fly, but it still fits in with my memory. Now all that's left is the snake:
there's a little red snake playing in the water
a little red snake doing what he oughter
he frightened the duck and the frog so bad
he ate the bug and he said "I'm glad
I'm a little red snake playing in the water
hiss! hiss! hiss!
Woah woah woah. The snake ATE the bug?! What kind of horrible children's song is this? I definitely don't remember anything like that happening. Maybe the last verse provides a happy ending.
now there's nobody left sitting in the water
nobody left doing what he oughter
there's nothing left but the lily pad
the duck and the frog ran away, I'm sad
'cause there's nobody left sitting in the water
boo! hoo! hoo!
This is a TERRIBLE story! I was in kindergarten long before the PC Police started sanitizing everything so I doubt we sang an edited version. It's no wonder my brain blocked out all of the lyrics. Maybe all of my neurosies come from the repressed memory of having to perform this twisted tale. Perhaps it's best that my theatrical career was short-llived.
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