© 1974 (4th Grade) W. Murray Sexton
There once was a dragon, Xuedervoo by name,
Whose hospitality won him worldy acclaim.
He had knife-sharp claws and eight-inch teeth
Razors on his back and scales underneath.
Standing ‘leven feet tall, with fiery breath,
That oblong face: seein’ him’s surely sudden death!
But even with all his horrible features,
Xuedervoo the dragon was still a friendly creature.
Many knights came for a damsel in distress,
But finding no damsel, they went away amiss.
Some came to look for riches and jewels,
But none thought to ask -- the discourteous fools.
After looking through the cave and finding no treasure,
They left, and the dragon simply said, “My pleasure!”
As I said before, he was friendly as could be,
But a dragon being friendly was more than most could see.
He tried and tried to find a true friend,
But (so it seemed) that search would never end.
Several spread some terrible rumors,
But Tommy Sullivan took them all in good humor.
Tommy made a visit to our friend Xuedervoo,
And said to the dragon, “How do you do?”
The dragon was amazed, and filled with joy,
To hear such friendly words from this little boy.
They became friends as quickly as ever,
And vowed to each other to be apart never.
Tom’s parents received an awful shock,
They asked their physician, “What’s wrong with him, Doc?”
The whole wide world was truly amazed,
And Tommy’s courage was greatly praised.
But Tommy said, “It’s nothing. He’s quite a guy.
I really don’t see why everyone can’t try!”
The moral of the story is plain to see:
The cover and the book may the same not be.
That was the story of Xuedervoo and friend,
And this is the last: the very end.
