On Top of Mount Everest
(to the tune of “On Top of Old Smokey”)
On top of Mount Everest,
all covered with snow,
a skiing gorilla
yelled, “Look out below!”
He skied down the mountain
at breathtaking speed
as everyone cheered at
his daredevil deed.
Hi skied down a glacier
He flew off a jump
but bounced off a boulder
and tripped on a bump.
He staggered and stumbled.
He let out a yell.
He toppled and tumbled
and flipped as he fell.
So soon that gorilla
was covered with snow.
A big hairy snowball
that started to grow.
He rolled down the mountain.
He bounced and he flew,
then bumped into base camp;
his journey was through.
With skis sticking outward
like popsicle sticks,
the people who saw him
applauded his tricks.
And when they unfroze him
and said what he’d done,
he got an idea and
a lightbulb went on.
So now that gorilla
is a millionaire
for he had invented
the popsicle there.
And now when he’s skiing
you won’t see him crash.
Instead of Mount Everest,
he skis mountains of cash.
— Kenn Nesbitt
Copyright © 2009. All Rights Reserved.
Reading Level: Grade 4
Topics: Animal Poems, Sports, Super Silly Songs
Poetic Techniques: Alliteration, Anthropomorphism & Personification, Narrative Poems
Word Count: 185
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