World Wonder by Betty J. Beam

(a children’s poem)

Cataracts cascading
Sun shining
Mist mounting
Rainbows arching

Rapids roaring
Gulls soaring
Blossoms blooming
People peering

Picture making
Breath taking
World wonder
Niagara Falls

Source: The author, 2001

A Pioneer’s Prayer by Betty J. Beam

(a children’s poem)

The forests tall
The waterfall
The fish and birds
The buffalo herds —
This wilderness, God bless!

Our freedom’s birth
The men of worth
The fertile soil
The strength to toil —
This little town, God bless!

The ocean’s tide
The prairies wide
The mountain heights
The northern lights —
This Canada, God bless!

Source:  The Author, 2001

 

The Niagara River by Betty J. Beam

(a children’s poem)

Wild white water is

Boil, cascade
Roil, cannonade
Crash, flume
Splash, spume

Drench, glide
Stench, slide
Gush, leap
Rush, sweep

Lunge, pollution
Plunge, solution
Outpour, overflow
Uproar, undertow

Turbulence, spray
Violence, ricochet
Stream, swirl
Steam, whirl

Penned power

Source: The Author, 2001.

Friday Fireworks by Betty Beam

friday fireworks
(a children’s poem)

friday fireworks
Fireworks over Niagara Falls

Each Friday night, fireworks
Light the Falls and the park,
All through the summer months,
After ten, when it’s dark.

As we weave through the crowd
And descend on Clifton Hill,
The traffic is noisy,
Tourists’ voices are shrill.

We stop at the corner
Till the light turns from red;
Hike past the lily pond,
Skirt a long flower bed.

A battery of blasts,
An explosion of stars,
Greet the thrilling throng
Mid massed buses and cars.

There are loud OH!s and AH!s —
Children’s cries of delight;
As huge flaming flowers,
Bloom above in the night.

Gold and silver sparks shoot —
Reds… blues… dart at angles,
Then shower the gorge with
A riot of spangles.

One last bang!  The show ends!
There’s applause, a wild cheer,
Then a child’s voice exclaims,
The best fireworks this year!

Source: The author, 2002.

The Floral Clock by Betty J. Beam

(a children’s poem)

Former U.S. President Jimmy Carter & wife Rosalynn at the floral clock, July 10, 1996. Photo by George Bailey, courtesy of Niagara Falls Public Library

A giant clock grows on the ground
In a leafy park-land bower,
It lies against a grassy mound
Where hydro transformers tower.

The turbines make a humming sound
As water provides the power.
And power makes the hands go ’round
As bright blossoms bloom the hour,

In winter snow, no one’s around —
All lies dormant, drab and dour,
But, summer, tourist can be found
Photographing time in flower.

 

Source: The Author, 2001.