If...

[WildIrish]

by Rudyard Kipling


Anyone else have to learn it for school?

I was required to learn it and recite it in front of my 4th grade class, and I still remember it to this day.

If not If, what? Do you remember anything else you were required to memorize for school?



32-26-28


Settle down ya perverts! It's just my high school locker combination! :D

[maddy]

I believe this was geometry... or trig... one of those math classes... and my teacher used to chant it as if it were a native american tribal call.

soh-cah-toa

sine = opposite/hypotnuse

cosine = adjacent/hypotnuse

tangent = opposite/adjacent

[WildIrish]

Ah yes...Algebra! I absolutely loved Algebra & Trig.


Tutoring Mrs. WI in it, however, was not fun! ha ha

[Lilith]

Whose woods these are, I do not know...


Robert Frost.

Not my favorite

[IowaMan]

"Death of the Hired Man" by Robert Frost. That was for the state speech competition I want to say my sophomore year of H.S.

About the only other thing that comes to mind is: "The sum of the square of the two sides equals the square of the hypotenuse." The only reason that sticks in my mind is because one of my friends couldn't figure out the Pythagorean theorem to save his life and our geometry teacher made us recite the damn thing over and over. Took us a damn week before she just gave up and let me tutor him for the semester.

[wyndhy]

twas brillig and the slithy toves
did gyre and gimble in the wabe
all mimsy were the borrogoves
and the momeraths outgrabe....

beware the jabberwock, my son!
....
i forget the rest

jabberwocky, lewis carroll



somehow it seems to fill my head with ideas only ... i don't know exactly what they are. :D

[Neige]

Para los ninos trabajamos...
(I forget the rest...)

It was the mantra of my Spanish teacher and she made us say it at the beginning of every class.

[dicksbro]

My name and how to tie my shoes. Those were early biggies. :)

[Oldfart]

How to get home. Got that one right really quickly.

[PantyFanatic]

I only tried memorizing one thing :nana: (http://pi.ytmnd.com/) .......................... and I'm still working on it. :o

[IowaMan]

I honestly expected to click on that link and get the pic from the "Madame Lilith" thread. :D

[sodaklostsoul]

LMAO^^^^^ I thought it would be him peeking up a skirt!!

[Oldfart]

I worked out the connection.

PFs girl chorus did that apparently on one breath, that is, without pants. So what happened to the pants? Ask the bloke with Pi(e) on his mind.

[jay-t]

The moto for the Future Farmers of America
Learning to do,doing to learn,
learning to earn,earning to live,
living to serve.

never did learn how to live by farming!

[scotzoidman]

I never memorized "If", but was a big Kipling fan when I was young...I always wanted to memorize some part of "Jabberwocky", but always got confused by Mad Magazine's satire of the same; "'Twas Brillo, & the GE stoves, did Proctor-Gamble in the Glade..."

But I did memorize the first part of this one:

The time has come, the Walrus said,
To talk of many things...
Of shoes & ships & sealing wax,
Of cabbages & kings,
And why the sea is boiling hot,
And whether pigs have wings...

And I wasn't surprised too much to learn later that John Lennon was inspired by the poem to write the Beatles' "I Am The Walrus".

[scotzoidman]

I also remember all the words to the alma mater song of McMurray Junior High.
:hair:

[Lilith]

** High School
** High School
Tender memories true
Linger o'er us ever near us
With each thought of you.

[dicksbro]

LMAO^^^^^ I thought it would be him peeking up a skirt!!

I did, too! :roflmao:

[Oldfart]

Scotz, that's almost half way through the poem.

[osuche]

IF we shadows have offended
Think but this and all is mended
That you have but slumber'd here
While these visions did appear.

And yes, I remember the whole soliliquy

I also remmeber about 90% of Tennyson's Ulysses "Made weak by time and fate, but strong in will/To strive, to seek, to find, and not to yield."


Oh! And How about....

My Very Energetic Mother Just Sold Us Nine ...(erm) ... Pizzas

[Lilith]

My Very Energetic Mother Just Served Us Nachos ;) new school :p

[PantyFanatic]

LMAO^^^^^ I thought it would be him peeking up a skirt!!
I thought he said something you learned 'FOR SCHOOL'.

[jseal]

Quis? ... ego!

[osuche]

Et tu, brute?

Gallia est omnis divisa in partes tres...

[Irezumi Kiss]

I went to a Catholic grade school (not Catholic, though) and subsequently went on Christian summer camp sessions during Augusts. I learned some silly, nonsensical (and useless for me now) Christian-based campfire songs that I am now recalling verbatim as they were drilled into my brain by the counselors and counselors-in-training, ad infinitum.

To repeat them here would serve no great purpose, save it to know that every refrain ended in "...so let's all praise the Lord," followed by something silly that was supposed to make us kids laugh.

[Oldfart]

In occupandis praesidiis, magna vi uterque nitebatur.

Damn those ancient Italians.

[jseal]

osuche,

It was a vivid example of how rapidly language changes! When I attended Lushoto School, if someone had something he wished to give away, he shouted "Quiz?". The first one to say “Echo” could have it.

As an aside, since these transactions were between boarding school boys, this could lead to somewhat undesirable items “Quiz-ed”.

OK, in and of itself a quaint custom. Many years later, my brother mentioned in passing that he was reading a novel by Somerset Maugham (perhaps not), and in it there is a scene set in Oxford where one of the students held up his clenched fist, announced ‘Quis?’, and another said ‘Ego’.

It was only then that I recognized that I and the other students at had been obliviously chanting a corrupt Latin! I have been sold on the plastic and mutable nature of natural languages ever since.

[osuche]

Jseal, that's so cool!!! Thanks to the latin context, I immediately guessed what was going on.....the mutability of linguistics is cool. Something else I'd like to study in my lifetime. :D

[nikki1979]

lol all i remember about high school is how to get past the lunch "gaurds" in the parkinglot as i was leaving!! i skipped more school than i EVER made it to, i wish to god i was being sarcastic cuz i did infact graduate with an A average, u think if id applied myself i cud be making more than 8 an hour???

[scotzoidman]

Scotz, that's almost half way through the poem.
Do tell? I seem to remember there being a good deal more to the poem, like at least a full page in the book...anyway, old Lew Carroll was a damn fine writer for being a druggie and a part-time child molester as well...

[wyndhy]

the story tweedledee and tweedledum tell alice:


The sun was shining on the sea,
Shining with all his might:
He did his very best to make
The billows smooth and bright--
And this was odd, because it was
The middle of the night.


The moon was shining sulkily,
Because she thought the sun
Had got no business to be there
After the day was done--
"It's very rude of him," she said,
"To come and spoil the fun!"


The sea was wet as wet could be,
The sands were dry as dry.
You could not see a cloud, because
No cloud was in the sky:
No birds were flying overhead--
There were no birds to fly.


The Walrus and the Carpenter
Were walking close at hand;
They wept like anything to see
Such quantities of sand:
"If this were only cleared away,"
They said, "it would be grand!"


"If seven maids with seven mops
Swept it for half a year.
Do you suppose," the Walrus said,
"That they could get it clear?"
"I doubt it," said the Carpenter,
And shed a bitter tear.


"O Oysters, come and walk with us!"
The Walrus did beseech.
"A pleasant walk, a pleasant talk,
Along the briny beach:
We cannot do with more than four,
To give a hand to each."


The eldest Oyster looked at him,
But never a word he said:
The eldest Oyster winked his eye,
And shook his heavy head--
Meaning to say he did not choose
To leave the oyster-bed.


But four young Oysters hurried up,
All eager for the treat:
Their coats were brushed, their faces washed,
Their shoes were clean and neat--
And this was odd, because, you know,
They hadn't any feet.


Four other Oysters followed them,
And yet another four;
And thick and fast they came at last,
And more, and more, and more--
All hopping through the frothy waves,
And scrambling to the shore.


The Walrus and the Carpenter
Walked on a mile or so,
And then they rested on a rock
Conveniently low:
And all the little Oysters stood
And waited in a row.


"The time has come," the Walrus said,
"To talk of many things:
Of shoes--and ships--and sealing-wax--
Of cabbages--and kings--
And why the sea is boiling hot--
And whether pigs have wings."


"But wait a bit," the Oysters cried,
"Before we have our chat;
For some of us are out of breath,
And all of us are fat!"
"No hurry!" said the Carpenter.
They thanked him much for that.


"A loaf of bread," the Walrus said,
"Is what we chiefly need:
Pepper and vinegar besides
Are very good indeed--
Now if you're ready, Oysters dear,
We can begin to feed."


"But not on us!" the Oysters cried,
Turning a little blue.
"After such kindness, that would be
A dismal thing to do!"
"The night is fine," the Walrus said.
"Do you admire the view?


"It was so kind of you to come!
And you are very nice!"
The Carpenter said nothing but
"Cut us another slice:
I wish you were not quite so deaf--
I've had to ask you twice!"


"It seems a shame," the Walrus said,
"To play them such a trick,
After we've brought them out so far,
And made them trot so quick!"
The Carpenter said nothing but
"The butter's spread too thick!"


"I weep for you," the Walrus said:
"I deeply sympathize."
With sobs and tears he sorted out
Those of the largest size,
Holding his pocket-handkerchief
Before his streaming eyes.


"O Oysters," said the Carpenter,
"You've had a pleasant run!
Shall we be trotting home again?'
But answer came there none--
And this was scarcely odd, because
They'd eaten every one.

[IowaMan]

This one just came back to me:

Kingdom, Phylum, Class, Order, Family, Genus, Species.


I guess there's always: ROY G. BIV for the colors of the spectrum too.

[wyndhy]

i pledge allegiance to the flag of the united states of america, and to the republic for which it stands, one nation, indivisible with liberty and justice for all.
:D

[Lilith]

we still say Under God at my school

[jseal]

I wonder when the words "under God" were added?

[PantyFanatic]

we still say Under God at my school
Our ladies are both telling their ages. ;)

I was taught the same as Wyndhy. Some time in the late 50's "under god" was added to the pledge of allegiance that we had to stand and recite in grade school every morning and I still stumble over the addition. :o

[wyndhy]

I was taught the same as Wyndhy.
actually, i was taught the under god part as well (jeez pf...i'm only 34 :p) but when i decided i was agnostic (thanks to me) and that it was antithesis to the philosophy of our nation (thanks to the nuances american govenment presented middle-school style) i chose to leave it out myself. they say under god at my daughter’s school too, lil. she is still deciding if she is a believer and says it the way the rest of the class does...because it's what the rest of the clss does, says she.


:D some interesting and useless info on the subject of the pledge:

written in 18*mumblemumble* by frank bellamy (a baptist minister forced to stop serving his church after sermonizing on increasingly socialist topics, and who later left his church because he was discouraged and sickened by the increasing bigotry) it originally went as follows: i pledge allegiance to my flag and to the republic for which it stands, one nation, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all. he was gonna use “equality” as well, but as chairman of a committee of state superintendents of education in the NEA, he was hip to the fact that state superintendents were against equality for blacks and women. according to bellamy, the key ideas were indivisible, which was supposed to recollect the civil war and the triumph of a federal union (indivisible is the same word webster and lincoln used to repeat in their great speeches and he wanted to use it), and liberty and justice for all, which was supposed to recall our balance between equality and individual freedom, justice being that balance. it was first published in a magazine called “the youth’s companion.” and as chairman of that committee for the NEA, he prepared the programs for the public schools and structured just such a program around a flag raising, a flag salute, and his pledge of allegiance (can you say self promotion? :D). by the 1920’s, reciting the pledge had become a ritual in most public schools.

the pledge did not include the phrases “of the united states of america” or “under god.” “of the united states” was added by the national flag conference (a joint group made up of members from the american legion and the daughters of the revolution) in 19*mublemumble* (20’s maybeish, that would make sense because of it’s increasing usage) ‘cause they were worried that the millions of new immigrants would take the phrase “my flag” as meaning the immagrants could remain patriotic and loyal to their native nations, so “my flag” became “the flag of the united states.” “of america” was added later…added insurance, i suppose, against anyone from that other united states. :D bellamy protested this change but was ignored.

in the1950s - that feel-good, commie stalking, atheist cursing, power of positive thinking, ozzie and harriet normalcy, you-shall-perish-in-a-nuclear-holocaust-unless-you-embrace-jesus era - the now so-called “new religiosity” overran washington. they had these pissing contests to out-do each other and prove their piety. eisenhower started the prayer breakfast. congress created a prayer room in the capitol and (with ike’s support) added the words in god we trust on all paper money. then it made those same four words the nation's official motto, replacing e pluribus unum. amendments were introduced to state that americans obeyed “the authority and law of jesus christ.”

then, a reverend of the presbyterian church - a man by the name of docherty - gave a sermon about how the pledge could be about any country…citing moscovites in particular, and how he could picture them saluting their hammer and sickle … conveniently forgetting that liberty and justice for all wasn’t exactly one of the ussr’s mottoes. he strongly urged the inclusion of “under god” in the pledge to denote what he felt was special about the good ol' US of A. legend has it that eisenhower (already keen on the idea) happened to be there. another catalyst was the knights of columbus who adopted “under god” for use in their own meetings, and, according to history, bombarded congressmen with calls for the rest of us to do the same.

the grand legislative history of the ensuing act introduced in 19*mumblemumble* stated the idea that we would “acknowledge the dependence of our people and our government upon the creator, denying the atheistic and materialistic concept of communism.” eisenhower signed the bill on flag day and announced that “millions of our schoolchildren will daily proclaim the dedication of our nation and our people to the almighty.” the fact that our nation was founded, constitutionally and philosophically speaking, under the exact opposite ideals seemed to entirely escape the president, congress, and most of the american public. not so much the supreme court, but their rulings of it being unconstitutional have not done much in the way of eliminating any of the christian dogma that was ingrained into us during those times.

whoops…went off a bit there.:o

aaaaanyway, more possible changes on the horizon… pro-life advocates have lobbied for this: i pledge allegiance to the flag of the united states of america and to the republic for which it stands, one nation under god, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all, born and unborn. and a few liberals have revised it slightly (summoning bellamy’s original thoughts): i pledge allegiance to my flag, and to the republic for which it stands, one nation, indivisible, with equality, liberty and justice for all.

[wyndhy]

and now for something completely different.

miss mary mack mack mack
all dressed in black black black
had silver buttons buttons buttons
all down her back back back
she asked her mother mother mother
for fifty cents cents cents
to see the elephants elephants elephants
jump over the fence fence fence
they jumped so high high high
they reached the sky sky sky
and din't come back bcak bcak
til the fourth of july ly ly.

:D

[jseal]

Ah...

There you have it.

[dicksbro]

and now for something completely different.

miss mary mack mack mack
all dressed in black black black
had silver buttons buttons buttons
all down her back back back
she asked her mother mother mother
for fifty cents cents cents
to see the elephants elephants elephants
jump over the fence fence fence
they jumped so high high high
they reached the sky sky sky
and din't come back bcak bcak
til the fourth of july ly ly.

:D

That made me think of this poem (almost a chant) we used to say (actually think my mom was the one that taught it from a poem she'd learned as a kid):

The Harlan Goat ... i-oat, i-oat
Was feeling fine ... i-ine, i-ine.
Ate three red shirts ... i-irts, i-irts
Right off the line ... i-ine, i-ine.
The farmer came out ... i-out, i-out.
Gave him a whack ... i-ack, i-ack.
And tied him to ... i-oo, i-oo
The railroad track ... i-ack, i-ack.


The whistle blew ... i-ew, i-ew.
The train drew nigh ... i-igh, i-igh.
The Harlem Goat ... i-oat, i-oat
Was bound to die ... i-i, i-i.
And in his mis ... i-is, i-is,
Ery and pain ... i-ain, i-ain,
Coughed up the shirts ... i-irts, i-irts,
And flagged the train ... i-ain, i-ain.

[wyndhy]

i love that! i'm gonna teach it to my girl.

[WildIrish]

Ah yes...18*mumblemumble*...not a good year for pussytwats.


But an important time in the rise of the peckercocks. :D

[wyndhy]

onward pekckerco-o-ocks...marching into twats
with the stiff reso-o-olve, spewing lots and lots
cocks, my yummy lollipops, in my mouth they go
forward into ba-a-tle, see them poised to blow.

i did not learn that in school. :p
:roflmao:





~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
and now for something completely different.

my mother and your mother were out hanging clothes
my mother punched your mother right in the nose
what color was the blood?

PURPLE!

p
u
r
p
l
e
and
you
are
not
out
un-
less
i
keep
mak-
ing
up
words
to
this
game
un-
til
you
are
the
one
i
want-
ed
to
be
out.

:D

[sodaklostsoul]

:roflmao: :roflmao: :roflmao:

[LixyChick]

OMG...I've just learned I might be a communist! :yikes:

I'm not all that materialistic, but I am an atheist, so I guess that would make me a not-so-good communist (according to those editing the Pledge of Allegence).

However, what other not-so-good communist do you know that attended Vacation Bible School and Sunday School as a child? :huh:

Not only did I attend, but I had to memorize the books of the Old Testament in order to earn my bible. I can recite them whenever prompted...so DON'T prompt me! I've yet to find the "delete" button in my brain to rid me of the books. I could REALLY use that brain space now!

And you thought I got off topic again...huh? :hippy:

[jseal]

I’m sure we have all learned in one school or another, even if it were the school of hard knocks, that communism is a political ideology advocating a classless society, the abolition of private ownership and all sources of wealth and production being collectively owned and controlled, while atheism is the belief that there is no god. One is an ideology, while the other is a theological claim. It seems plausible that, following the fall of the Soviet Union there were far fewer communists, while the number of “people of faith” - be they theists or atheists – need not have changed significantly one way or another.

As I recall (from Sunday School perhaps?), the early Christian church, a faith filled and religious group if ever there was one, was a communist society. Acts 2, 44 – 45 (http://bible.oremus.org/?passage=acts+2%3A44-45&vnum=no&version=nrsv).

Faith need not mark out people that we would term “religious”. An example is that to be an atheist requires a great leap of faith, that is, to assent to the unprovable statement, the uprovable premise that no God exists. So, in fact, an atheist and a theist are both people of faith, they are both believers. It just happens that the formers belief is negative, while the latter is affirmative. Additionally, being an atheist need not be the same as anti-religious.

[dicksbro]

Does this mean we're not talking about the Harlan Goat anymore? ... or Kipling ... or Frost, even? :shrug:


:rolleyes2

[Lilith]

Here's the one I am trying to teach my boys:

so much depends
upon
a red wheel
barrow

glazed with rain
water

beside the white
chickens.

William Carlos Williams

[jseal]

Does this mean we're not talking about the Harlan Goat anymore? ...
dicksbro,

How about this one I recall (not directly) from Euclid?

"A chief had three daughters. When they came of age, he married them off."

"With the first he gave as a wedding gift, a beautiful Black Bear hide for power. He gave a Deer’s’ hide to the husband of the second. At the wedding of the third daughter, the apple of his eye, he gave the happy couple a truly dazzling gift! It was a hippopotamus hide rug which the chief had just received in trade with one of those newly discovered White Men."

"In due course, the first squaw gave birth to a healthy son. A son was also given to the second squaw. The third squaw, however, had twins!"

"Now class, does anyone know why?"

.
.
.






.
.
.

"Didn’t ANYONE prepare Proposition 47 for today’s class?"

.
.
.



.
.
.
"You there! Little Johnny! Can you tell me why the Chief’s third daughter had twins?"

.
.
.

“Um... er... ah, is it because the Squaw on hippopotamus is equal to the Sum of the Squaws on the other two hides?"