I recently came across this beautiful poem, Kit Wrights’ ‘The Magic Box,’ which I’ve used many, many times with children.
They love it. And so do I – the ideas, the metaphors, the imagery.
The whole thing just screams of someone looking at the world, full of awe and wonder, curiosity and of course, gratitude. So while it may be aimed at children…. I personally know a lot of children who already have these qualities, whereas most adults I know have often lost them somewhere along the 9 to 5.
So here it is – for you and your inner child….
The Magic Box
by Kit Wright
I will put in the box
the swish of a silk sari on a summer night,
fire from the nostrils of a Chinese dragon,
the tip of a tongue touching a tooth.
I will put in the box
a snowman with a rumbling belly
a sip of the bluest water from Lake Lucerene,
a leaping spark from an electric fish.
I will put into the box
three violet wishes spoken in Gujarati,
the last joke of an ancient uncle,
and the first smile of a baby.
I will put into the box
a fifth season and a black sun,
a cowboy on a broomstick
and a witch on a white horse.
My box is fashioned from ice and gold and steel,
with stars on the lid and secrets in the corners.
Its hinges are the toe joints of dinosaurs.
I shall surf in my box
on the great high-rolling breakers of the wild Atlantic,
then wash ashore on a yellow beach
the colour of the sun.
Just a question to finish…. What would you in your magic box?
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