No, Nothing, Never -

Have you gone down

In the dark where none is welcome?

He heard the constant sound between the

Walls of our house.

He tried to locate it

He attacked the wash with fierce energy

As if to get rid of the troubled ideas which boiled in his head

Like the water in the bubbling tanks

No, nothing, never

He threw the dirty whites into the

Washer, and closed the lid with a bang

He felt the angry waves rush at him

As though they would tear him from his seat

And great sheets of stinging spray were flung in his face

No, nothing, never

No, nothing, never

«Poor thing» she said

«I suppose it’s not quite right in its little head.»

She fed him bread and milk on the end of a sliver of wood

Which he took willingly, and soon he was growing fat and strong

No, nothing, never

She would encourage him by talking to him

And he would start again

Step by step, feeling the way

And only putting his foot down

When he sensed firm ground beneath him

No, nothing, never

No, nothing, never

His food is given him in a plate and he is handed a spoon

With which he eats as well as any ordinary child

Seldom spilling any of the food

When he has finished, he hands the plate and spoon to the keeper who, in turn

Hands him a napkin with which he

Thoroughly removes all traces of his dinner

If given soap, water and towel

He will wash and dry his face and hands

He does many things which he has

Apparently learned through observation

No, nothing, never

No, nothing, never

No, nothing, never

When our Bobby was about a year old

Our dear little Toodles had a paralytic stroke and passed away

We buried him back of the barn