Boys

*Authors are unknown, unless otherwise noted.

You don't raise heroes; you raise sons. And if you treat them like sons, they'll turn out to be heroes, even if it's just in your own eyes.
~ Walter Schirra Sr.

To become a real boy you must prove yourself brave, truthful, and unselfish.
~From Pinocchio

There comes a time in every rightly constructed boy's life when he has a raging desire to go somewhere and dig for hidden treasure.
~Mark Twain

Two small arms to hold you tight,
Two small feet to run.
Two small eyes full of love for you,
One small son.

And he grew and grew strong as a boy must grow who does not know that he is learning any lessons, and who has nothing in the world to think of except things to eat.
~Rudyard Kipling

Here is my description of a truly happy land... Sons vigorous and tall as growing plants....
~ The Book of Psalms

No earthly joys could bring more pleasure than a little boy to love and treasure!

A boy's will is the wind's will, and the thoughts of youth are long, long thoughts.
~Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

One of the best things in the world is to be a boy; it requires no experience, but needs some practice to be a good one.
~ Charles Dudley Warner

No one is going to catch me, lady, and make me a man.  I want always to be a little boy and to have fun.
~James M. Barrie

Mothers of little boys work from son up to son down.

A boy is the only thing that God can use to make a man.

A boy is a joy.

Boy defined:
Nature's answer to that false belief that there is no such thing as perpetual motion.

You don't raise heroes, you raise sons. And if you treat them like sons, they'll turn out to be heroes, even if it's just in your own eyes.

Bugs: Small living things that
small living boys throw on
small living girls.

My Son
When you were born the stars shone bright,
A tiny perfect, wondrous sight.
The babe became a growing boy,
Meeting life with cries of joy,
From awkward steps to reading books,
Games with balls and baiting hooks.
As years went by, a man appeared,
Loved and nurtured through the years.
With honest eyes he views the day,
A caring heart is there to stay.
A silent strength, an active mind,
A better man is hard to find.
I view him with both love and pride,
For you, my son, in him reside.

...Excerpt From "What is a Boy"...
Trust with dirt on its face,
Beauty with a cut on its finger,
Wisdom with bubble gum in its hair,
And the hope of the future with
A frog in its pocket.

A Boy Is
A boy is...
Scuffed up knees, a freckled nose
with dimples here and there.
A daring, caring, sharing heart
a mass of tousled hair.
Boundless curiosity
the spirit to explore.
Two twinkling eyes, a smiling face
and energy galore!
A love of life, a bit of sass
a source of untold joy.
A wonderment, a dream fulfilled
God's miracle...a BOY!

Dear Lord,
May my son grow to be confident, may he be a healthy, independent adult, caring for himself and reaching out to others. May he have a long, successful life and grow from failures and errors I have allowed him to make.  May he have a loving, helpful mate and a satisfying career. Give me peace and contentment and when time marches on,  help me let him go.

Grow with me...
Once I was a baby boy,
A tiny thing who brought great joy.
Time, it passed as time will do.
The months flew by and now I'm two.
Still, my growing has just begun.
Blink and you could miss LOADS of fun.
You say you want to watch me grow?
Well turn this page, come on, let's go!
~Alison L

Little Boy
Tubs full of bubbles and bedtime tales.
Tricycle parades and cookie crumb trails.
Popsicle kisses and big bear hugs,
Little boy trains and jars full of bugs.
Life's filled with wonder and always a joy,
When you share life with your little boy.

Male Bonding
Pushing, shoving,
Climbing on a back.
Wrestling, scrambling,
They're under attack!
Imaginary swords,
Body blocks & jams,
Elbowing & poking
And a few body slams.
A fight, a brawl,
Now what can it be?
Oh. . .MALE BONDING!
(Now I see.)

Slow Down
Hey, little boy, where have you been and what pray tell are you going?
To fly a kite up to the sky while all the winds are blowing.
Hey, little boy, remember me, your mother home, and waiting?
Please share with me a dream or two before the time for dating.
Hey, little boy, the years are swift. We have so few to share.

Son
I'd like to hold you here with me, but I'm not sure I'd dare.
The time must pass and you must grow away from me I fear.
You're only four years old my son so please stay one more year.
Right now you're Mommy's little guy. Too soon you'll be a man.
So stay a while, and let me hold these years while still I can.
~ B. V. Dahlen

Why God Made Little Boys
God made a world out of His dreams
Of magic mountains, oceans and streams,
Prairies and plains and wooded land.
Then paused and thought, "I need someone to stand
On top of mountains, to conquer the seas,
Explore the plains and climb the trees.
Someone to start out small and grow,
Sturdy and strong like a tree," and so
He created boys, full of spirit and fun,
To explore and conquer, to ramp and run
With dirty faces, and banged up chins
With courageous hearts and boyish grins.
And when he had completed the task He'd begun,
He surely said, "That's a job well done."

What is a Boy? (the complete poem)
Between the innocence of babyhood and the dignity of manhood, we find a delightful creature of a boy. Boys come in assorted sizes, weights and colors. But all boys have the same creed: to enjoy every second of every minute of every day and to protest with noise (their only weapon) when their last minute is finished and the adult males pack them off to bed at night! Boys are found everywhere: on top of, underneath, inside of, climbing on, swinging from, running around, or jumping to. Mothers love them, little girls hate them, older sisters and brothers tolerate them and adults ignore them. A boy is truth with dirt on its face, beauty with a cut on its finger, wisdom with bubble gum in its hair, and the hope of the future with a frog in its pocket. When you are busy, a boy is an inconsiderate, bothersome, intruding jungle of noise. When you want him to make an impression, his brain turns into jelly or else he becomes a jungle creature, bound on destroying the world, and himself with it. A boy is a composite. He has the appetite of a horse, the digestion of a sword-swallower, the imagination of Paul Bunyan, the energy of a pocket-size atomic bomb, the curiosity of a cat, the shyness of a violet, the audacity of a steel trap, the enthusiasm of a fire cracker, and when he makes something, he has five thumbs on each hand. He likes ice cream, movies, Christmas, comic books, the boy across the street, woods, water in its natural habitat, large animals, trains, Saturday mornings, and fire engines. He is not much for Sunday school, composing, music lessons, neckties, barbers, girls, overcoats, adults or bedtime. Nobody else is so early to rise or so late to supper. Nobody else gets so much fun out of trees, dogs, and breezes. Nobody else can cram into one pocket a rusty knife, a half-eaten apple, 3 feet of string, 2 gumdrops, a five-cent slingshot, a chunk of unknown substance, and one supersonic code ring with a secret compartment. A boy is a magical creature--you can lock him out of your workshop, but you can't lock him out of your heart! You can get him out of your study, but you can't lock him out of your mind! Might as well give up! He is your captor, your jailer, your boss, and your master. But when your dreams tumble down and the world is a mess, he can put together the broken pieces in just a twinkle with a few magic words...I LOVE YOU!!
~Alan Marshall Beck

My Son
There's nothing like the blessing
Of a little baby boy
To fill your home with sunshine
And fill your heart with joy.
With hugs and bugs and footballs,
Baseballs, toys and grins,
You'll cherish all the memories
That you will share with him.
Take the time to walk and talk,
To share his dreams and plans.
All too soon your little boy
Will grow to be a man
~Kelly Martin

Little Boys
Little boys come in all shapes and sizes,
Shy and adventurous, full of surprises,
With misshapen halos and mischievous grins,
Small dirty faces, and sweet, sticky chins.
They'll keep you so busy, and yet all the while
Nothing can brighten the world like their smile.
And no greater treasure has brought homes more joy
Than a curious, active, and lovable boy!

Nature Boy
There was a boy
A very strange enchanted boy
They say he wandered very far, very far
Over land and sea
A little shy and sad of eye
But very wise was he
And then one day
A magic day, he passed my way
And while we spoke of many things
Fools and kings
This he said to me
"The greatest thing you'll ever learn
Is just to love and be loved in return"
~ Eden Ahbez

Goodnight My Angel
Goodnight, my angel
Time to close your eyes
And save these questions for another day
I think I know what you've been asking me
I think you know what I've been trying to say
I promised I would never leave you
And you should always know
Wherever you may go
No matter where you are
I never will be far away
Goodnight, my angel
Now it's time to sleep
And still so many things I want to say
Remember all the songs you sang for me
When we went sailing on an emerald bay
And like a boat out on the ocean
I'm rocking you to sleep
The water's dark
And deep inside this ancient heart
You'll always be a part of me
Goodnight, my angel
Now it's time to dream
And dream how wonderful your life will be
Someday your child may cry
And if you sing this lullaby
Then in your heart
There will always be a part of me
Someday we'll all be gone
But lullaby's go on and on
They never die
That's how you
And I
Will be.
~Billy Joel

I Took My Son's Hand
I took his eager little hand-
I let him lead the way
I didn't do the laundry
There's more important things today.
The wall has tiny handprints
From jam and butter toast,
Instead of tidying up a bit
We took the path he chose.
We had a grand adventure,
My little son and I,
We built a fort of sticks and stones
With windows to the sky.
We watched the clouds make sheep and bears
and a giant dinosaur.
To him the world's a playground
to wander and explore.
We waded in a bubbling brook
where minnows swim with ease.
We watched a robin feed her young,
then she floated on the breeze.
We found a glade down in the woods
And now my small son knows
How mama squirrel hides her nest
Where the mighty oak tree grows.
You see he is the oak tree
Just a sapling on its way,
to grander, greater, nobler things
A King he'll be someday.
My dishes went unwashed today,
I didn't make the bed,
And if my windows do not shine
His eyes will shine instead.
I didn't sweep the floors,
there are cobwebs on the stair,
In twenty years, no one around will know
or even care.
But I have helped my tiny boy
To a handsome young man grow,
and those who knew him as a child
Will look, and see, and know.

Little Boys are Treasures
Little Boys are treasures
who are worth their weight in gold
and charm everyone around them
from the time they're hours old....
They're Mommy's little darling,
They're a special pal to Dad,
And they bring the very happiest days
A family's ever had .

What are little boys made of? Made of? 
What are little boys made of? 
Snips and snails and puppy dog tails,
that's what little boys are made of.
~ Traditional Nursery Rhyme

I suppose there's a time in practically every young boy's life when he's affected by that wonderful disease of puppy love.  I don't mean the kind a boy has for a pretty girl that lives down the road.  I mean the real kind, the kind that has four small feet and a wiggly tail, and sharp little teeth that can gnaw on a boy's finger; the kind a boy can romp and play with, even eat and sleep with.
~Wilson Rawls

God made little boys for fun, for rough and tumble times of play;
He made their little legs to run and race and scamper through the day.
He made them strong for climbing trees, He suited them for horns and drums,
And filled them full of revelries so they could be their father's chums.
~Edgar Guest

Little Master Mischievous, in the cookie jar,
Who has ever told you where the cookies are?
Now your sticky fingers smear the curtains white:
You have finger-printed everything in sight.
There's no use in scolding; when you smile that way
You can rob of terror every word we say .
~Edgar Guest

The Inalienable Rights of Little Boys
We believe in the inalienable rights of little boys:
To have mothers who are good pals.
To get dirt on their hands and clothes, to ask questions, to make a healthy racket...to express themselves and have a place in the sun... to bring pockets with marbels and nails, and acorns and corks and chalk, and so on.
To learn to laugh at themselves and to take a joke and a hard knock or disappointment.
To know the world of outdoors -- the brooks and trees and birds and flowers -- personally, and in the nature books; to meet those dare-devils, Tom Mix and Rill Hart, and also the best people of history and literature -- Huckleberry Finn, the Knights of the Round Table, Arnold von Winkelried, Nathan Hale, Robinson Crusoe, and others.
To play at all hearty games and sports -- pirates and the Indian and coasting and ball and skating, and to go swimming in the ole' swimmin' hole.
And to be indulged in half holidays and red roast beef and pink ice cream and circus parades; and to be spanked -- or the equivalent of justice administered, when necessary -- and to be permitted an occasional green apple.
We believe in the inalienable right of little boys to be greatly loved and cared for.
~Yeoman Shield

As long as there are little boys
For mishief and mud pies,
For charming you, alarming you,
And coaxing lullabies~
As long as there are little boys,
So busy everywhere,
Your world is sure to be
A happy, loving place to share.

What is a Boy?
He's a darling, a treasure, a dreamer, a tease,
A lover of sports and a climber of trees,
A mixture of everything under the sun.
He's full of surprises, adventuresome, too,
He'll accomplish most anything he wants to do --
He's sunshine, he's laughter, he's your "pride and joy,"
And he's extra special...he's your little boy!

Laugh with him,
play with him,
watch him with pride...
Talk with him, learn with him,
stand by his side...
Dream with him,
grow with him
all your lives through...
And he'll share
a world full of joy with you.
~M.F. Ames

Treasures
Overalls hung on the hook by his hat,
and I noticed his pockets were bulging out fat.
I emptied them out in a pile on the chair,
and I tenderly touched every treasure with care:
There were three rubber bands, a parking lot ticket,
Two paper clips and a fishing cricket,
A camphor ball and an empty match box,
A half dozen nails and a couple of rocks,
A yellow golf tee, two lollipop sticks,
A marble, a spool and three tooth picks,
A knife and a pencil, some dry corn silk,
A wire and a cap from a bottle of milk,
A rusty door key and a white chicken feather,
An old clock gear and a piece of leather,
A flash-light bulb and three or four strings,
A broken dog biscuit and two hair springs.
Then I gathered them up, all his "treasures",
ev'ry rock, ev'ry nail and each rubber band,
And I put them all back, then I kissed him good-night,
and he smiled in his sleep as I turned out the light.
And I thrilled as I thought of the fun and the joy
trivial things could give to a boy.
~ Claire Richcreed Thomas

A Boy is---
A piece of skin stretched over an appetite.
A nose covered with smudges.
He is called a Tornado, because he comes at the most unexpected times, hits the most unexpected places, and leaves everything a wreck behind him.
He is part human, part angel, and part barbarian.
He is a growing animal of supurlative promise, to be fed, watered, and kept warm.
A joy forever, a periodic nuisance, the problem of our times, the hope of a nation.
Every new born boy is evidence that God is not yet discouraged with man.

Little boys' pockets hold magical things,
Earthworms, apple cores, a mess of string.
But this treasure is nothing to the wealth one finds
In little boys' hearts and little boys' minds.

He finds a pencil and marks on the walls.
He climbs on the piano and then he falls.
He upsets the garbage and plays in the ink
He spills the milk he refuses to drink.
He crawls in the sandbox and plays it's bed.
He refuses to bathe and cries instead.
In short, he wishes to do what he wishes.
He breaks your heart as well as your dishes.
But all is forgiven, all is bliss.
When he comes and gives you a big wet kiss.
~Nancy Moore Kelsey