The ‘Picnic’ prompt conjured up loads of pleasant memories.
As a child, the picnics I went to were fun but were simply no match to the picnics described in the Famous Five books written by Enid Blyton. Reality, to me as a child, fell short by eons.
The food in Blyton’s books were a treat to read about, so far and different from the food we ate in India and reading about all that came out of the picnic basket, was a picnic in itself.
As I write the poem, and describe the contents of the picnic basket, I realize Blyton did justice and actually laid the ground for healthy eating. The basket had a mix of healthy food : eggs, butter, cheese, meat, lettuces, radish, plums (what we call a balanced diet these days) but something about the way it was described made it sound exotic and drool-worthy.
Don’t tell me you never wished you could be on one of those picnics:). Maybe reading the below will bring back some sweet memories for you too.
Baskets filled with goodies,
Cream scones, hard-boiled eggs, tarts filled with jam,
Jars of potted meat, crisp lettuces and cold ham,
Red radishes, cucumber sandwiches with butter,
Wash it down with home-made lemonade and ginger-beer
Sunny blue skies, a dog with a wagging tail,
A ball, a checked cloth to spread it all on
Happy faces,
Sorrow no traces.
How many such picnics have I gone on?
I cannot count
Many a time, I dreamed, my sun-hat on
Some cake, some ginger-ale,
With the Famous fives of Enid Blyton,
Every night I spun a new tale,
Of adventures and mysteries,
Called it, “The Stellar Six series.”… (and I was part of the Famous Five; now they were six 🙂
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You’ve inspired me to write a short story about having a picnic, indoors with my boyfriend, when I was a teenager.
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Wow! That’s great to know. Thanks. Looking forward to reading your story😊
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Enid Blyton has a lot to answer for! I was always desperate to go camping and expected it to be just like one of her books – it wasn’t 🙂 Lovely poem though, it’s nostalgic and delicious!
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Oh my gosh…yes :). Every picnic and camping trip failed in comparison to Enid Blyton’s. Her’s were simply the best and so much fun to just go around, all over the country in a caravan, with loads of delicious sounding food. She definitely has a lot to answer for 🙂 Thank you Andrea.
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I also love Enid Blyton, Smitha, and I really enjoyed this poem. She did have quite a focus on food, didn’t she?
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I should have said ” Nobody does it like Enid Blyton. Robbie Cheadle comes very close” 😊. Yes she focused on food and I kept dreaming of ginger beer. Didnt like it much when I had it though😀. Even the eggs that I didn’t like eating as a child sounded amazing in the books. Glad you enjoyed it as much.
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Thank you, Smitha, that is a lovely thing to say. Enid Blyton was quite an extraordinary writer. She wrote 790 books – just amazing!
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You’re welcome Robbie. Yes and to think that despite so much change in the world, her writing is here to stay.
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