Greek Mythology 3500 BC to AD 2014

Botticelli - The Birth of Venus

Professor Alice Roberts - Origins of Us: Human Anatomy and Evolution

GARDEN SNAKE BY MURIEL L. SONNE

GARDEN SNAKE BY MURIEL L. SONNE 

Have you ever seen a snake fighting a mongoose, or getting into a hole, or swimming in the river? Everyone, almost everyone, believes that snakes are dangerous. Some are, most are not. Read this poem on a harmless garden snake. 

I saw a snake and ran away... 

Some snakes are dangerous, they say; 

But mother says that kind is good, 

And eats up insects for his food. 

So when he wiggles in the grass 

I’ll stand aside and watch him pass, 

And tell myself, “There’s no mistake, 

It’s just a harmless garden snake!”

MEADOW SURPRISES BY LOIS BRANDT PHILLIPS

MEADOW SURPRISES BY LOIS BRANDT PHILLIPS 

Walk across a green field, a park or even under a clump of trees, and you will notice many wonderful things. What are some of the surprises a meadow has for someone with a keen eye and a sharp ear? 

Meadows have surprises, 

You can find them if you look; 

Walk softly through the velvet grass, 

And listen by the brook. 

You may see a butterfly 

Rest upon a buttercup 

And unfold its drinking straws 

To sip the nectar up. 

You may scare a rabbit 

Who is sitting very still; 

Though at first you may not see him, 

When he hops you will. 

A dandelion whose fuzzy head 

Was golden days ago 

Has turned to airy parachutes 

That flutter when you blow. 

Explore the meadow houses, 

The burrows in the ground, 

A nest beneath tall grasses, 

The ant’s amazing mound. 

Oh! Meadows have surprises 

And many things to tell; 

You may discover these yourself, If you look and listen well.