Classic Poem

The chameleon changes his color;
He can look like a tree or a wall;
He is timid and shy and he hates to be seen,
So he simply sits down on the grass and grows green,
And pretends he is nothing at all.

I wish I could change my complexion
To purple or orange or red:
I wish I could look like the arm of a chair
So nobody ever would know I was there
When they wanted to put me to bed.

I wish I could be a chameleon
And look like a lily or rose;
I'd lie on the apples and peaches and pears,
But not on Aunt Margaret's yellowy chairs—
I should have to be careful of those.

The chameleon's life is confusing;
He is used to adventure and pain;
But if he ever sat on Aunt Maggie's cretonne
And found what a curious color he'd gone,
I don't think he'd do it again.