The Magic Forest. (Part Two, Stu's Tale) Poem by Owain Glyn

Said Stu the Gnu 'I am talking to you',
'I want you to listen to me',
'I'm certain you do' said the Blue Kangaroo,
'But I'm terribly late for my tea',
'Forget about tea and just listen to me''
'I've got something important to say',
'Tolstoy the Tiger has loaned me a book',
'About lands that exist far away'.
'I am happy for you' said the Blue Kangaroo,
'That Tiger's a wonderful soul',
'But can it not wait, till I've emptied my plate? ',
'It's got King Prawns and Chinese Spring Roll'.
'Oh well, if you must, ' said Stu the Gnu,
'But I think I've come up with a plan',
'So, finish your tea, then come over to me',
'And I'll tell you as much as I can'.
So Stu went off home and pored over the tome,
Which was all bound in purple and red,
It showed pictures of horses with black and white stripes,
These were Zebras, so Tolstoy had said.

Stu had lived in the forest, with all of his friends,
Ever since he was naught but a calf.
They had played silly games, calling each other names,
Telling jokes that made everyone laugh.
But sometimes, at night, when the Sun had gone down,
Stu would lie on his bed, and he'd muse;
That it might be the case, in a faraway place,
There were thousands of other Gnus.

So he went to see Tolstoy, whose knowledge was vast,
In every conceivable way,
He didn't pretend, he just told his good friend,
Of the thoughts he was having today.
'Now I may have a book, '
'Come on in and we'll look, '
'And I'll brew up some tea, if I may, '
'I'm grateful to you, ' returned Stu the Gnu,
'But I don't want to be in the way, '
'You could never be that, if you move my Top-Hat, '
'You can sit on that chair by the fire.'
'Then I'll hunt down that book, '
'And we'll both take a look, '
'Then decide if it's what you require.'

Tolstoy brewed tea, then said, 'Let me see, '
'It might just be under the bed, '
'If it's not, then I'm sure, it'll be by the door, '
'With the others that I have just read.'
Tolstoy rummaged around, and he very soon found,
A large book bound in purple and red,
He then opened it up, as he sipped from his cup,
'This is it, I am certain, ' he said.
'Yes, this is the book, come on over and look, '
'It may answer some questions for you, '
'There are pictures of Monkeys, and Zebras and Snakes, '
'And I'm sure that these here are Gnu.'
'Yes, thank you, ' said Stu, 'they are surely Gnu, '
'May I borrow this book for a while? '
'Yes, of course, friend, you may' Stu had heard Tolstoy say,
As he passed it across with a smile.
In the time that it took, Stu to study the book,
He had slowly developed a plan,
He knew of a Stoat who would rent him a boat,
That was how the adventure began.
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