Have you ever wanted to be the British Poet Laureate? This doesn't seem to be a common goal anymore. The current Poet Laureate has been serving since May 10, 2019. Simon Armitage was appointed to this honor by Queen Elizabeth. I submitted several dirty limericks to her (mostly about Nantucket and mustard and a messy picnic...I am sure you have heard of them) but was cast aside by her as she picked Armitage. Here is one of his poems.
As you can see, he doesn't even know how many lines are in a limerick...and it barely rhymes. More assonances than I care to see in a poem.
Today is a special day because way back in 1850 the perfectly named Poet Laureate William Wordsworth was replaced by Alfred Tennyson. I don't think any of them wrote any dirty limericks, but if you know of some won't you post them below? One of Wordsworth's most famous poems is Daffodils.
Unfortunately Wordsworth passed away in April of 1850, so he was unable to continue on as Poet Laureate. Tennyson (who makes a great addition to a limerick about Galveston...if you are into assonances) was appointed by Queen Victoria. She held on to her kingdom for a very long time, just as Tennyson held onto his appointment for a record breaking 42 years. This led to the very famous stanza:
"For many years...like 42
Tennyson wrote poems about the ocean blue"
At least that is how I remember it. One of Tennyson's most famous poems was Crossing the Bar.
This poem was an elegy by Tennyson. He knew that his time was running out, and he demonstrated courage and satisfaction as he crossed from this life to the next. May we all be comforted by this poem's timeless message as we race toward the end of our own lives.
If you are considering trying to become the next poet laureate of Britain, I would suggest staying away from limericks. Take my word for it...Queen Elizabeth will not be impressed!
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