My name. I’ve written about it before. Polly. That’s the real deal. It is on my Birth Certificate, my Baptismal Notice, and stamped on my butt, in very minuscule letters, which resemble a mole.
It isn’t a very popular name. Of the 327 MILLION people in the United States right now, only 36,000 are named Polly. Roughly. If my name were Mary, there would be 4.5 million of me. Yes. So Polly. We are few.
Regardless of our low Polly numbers, there has been quite a few references to us, in song, nursery rhyme, literature, and media.
Polly Want a Cracker?
Polly Wolly Doodle All the Day.
Polly Anna.
Polyester.
Polly Pocket.
And then, there is Polly Put the Kettle On.
Now, there is a masterful piece of work, I will tell you.
Polly put the kettle on,
Polly put the kettle on,
Polly put the kettle on,
We’ll all have tea.
Sukey take it off again,
Sukey take it off again,
Sukey take it off again,
They’ve all gone away.
Breathtaking. Stunning.
Here is how hard up people were for entertainment in days of yore. In 1916, they made a film, inspired by the song. It starred Grace Helen Bailey.
I can’t imagine really. The dialogue must have been captivating. Riveting.
“Polly. Put the kettle on.”
“I’m on it.”
“Sukey, dear. Take it off again.”
“Consider it done.”
You know, I say all this in fun.
Yet, whoever we are, in our sameness and our differences, we deserve to be exactly who we are. To explore our talents and our contributions.
But maybe a simpler time — a time that still had manners — is exactly what ALL of us need.
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“I am a rare species, not a stereotype.”
― Ivan E. Coyote
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“The most intriguing people you will encounter in this life are the people who had insights about you, that you didn’t know about yourself.”
― Shannon L. Alder
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“You say freak, I say unique.”
― Christian Baloga
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