Jerome was a unique giraffe,
To say so is certainly valid.
He like central air over jungle heat
And he preferred his leaves in a salad.
He had a gentle way about him
And large blue soulful eyes.
When he put his reading glasses on
They looked three times their size.
He didn’t “fit in” in the jungle –
That was discouraging – but true.
Friends teased him about it all the time.
It bothered him more than they knew.
He would smile and laugh on the outside,
But inside his tears were mounting.
Until he took a correspondence course
In of all things – cost accounting.
Accounting seemed to suit Jerome.
He studied all night and all day.
He found joy in taking class after class,
And in earning his CPA.
The day he received his diploma
He felt pride and great satisfaction.
He couldn’t wait to find a job
To put his knowledge into action.
He spent days looking through help-wanted ads
And completing job applications
Not many businesses were searching for
A giraffe with his qualifications.
He was excited when the call came in
From an accounting firm in the city.
They asked Jerome if he would meet
With the firm’s interviewing committee.
When the letter arrived with an offer
(It came as a tremendous surprise),
With a lump in his throat he packed his bags
And started to say his “good byes.”
He was anxious on the trip to the city,
Though he couldn’t quite put a name to it,
And his heartbeat got faster and faster
The closer and closer he came to it.
First he had to find a place to live,
Which is harder than it sounds
For a giraffe that is twelve feet tall
And weighs eighteen hundred pounds.
Finally he found an old warehouse loft,
Though it was in need of repairs.
He couldn’t fit in the elevator,
So he had to walk up the stairs.
But his view from the loft was beautiful!
The city was a marvelous sight.
He gazed out his window for hours and hours
Before settling in for the night.
In the morning he set off exploring –
He just couldn’t wait to begin…
But the city was a challenging place
For a giraffe his size to fit in.
He didn’t fit in the subway
He couldn’t fit on the bus.
He got stuck in a revolving door –
That caused quite a fuss!
He choked himself on a power line
(It hurt his neck and his pride).
And when he tried to use a phone booth
He could fit only his head inside.
He was back to feeling anxious
But knew this time what it was about.
He wanted so much to fit in
And he was literally sticking out.
He returned to his loft, a little forlorn
And wrote a short note to his mother.
Tomorrow, he thought, he would try it again –
Put one hoof in front of the other.
When he climbed out of bed in the morning
He had a glimmer of hope in his heart.
It was day one at his brand new job –
He was excited and anxious to start.
He brushed his mane and brushed his teeth,
And tied his tie with taut precision.
On the walk to his new office suite
He practiced his long division.
He was shocked when he walked in the door
By a banner reading “Welcome Jerome!”
And when he sat at his huge wooden desk
He was sure he had found his new home.
He excelled when it came to accounting
And was as happy as he ever had been.
Though the only giraffe in the office,
Jerome knew in his heart he fit in.
Oh he loved to visit his family
And the jungle so lush and so green.
But he found his place in the city
And in the hum of his adding machine.
Fabletime 