"JENNY kiss'd me when we met,Jumping from the chair she sat in;
Time, you thief, who love to get
Sweets into your list, put that in!
Say I'm weary, say I'm sad,
Say that health and wealth have miss'd me,
Say I'm growing old, but add,
Jenny kiss'd me."
- by Leigh Hunt
I've always loved this poem! It's got a whimsical rhythm and was probably one of the first poems I committed to memory because it was so fun to recite.
Leigh Hunt was a English writer and he was friends with the writer Thomas Carlyle. "Jenny" in the poem is often said to be Carlyle's wife Jane. Supposedly Leigh Hunt had been bed ridden with influenza for an extended period. When Hunt finally recovered and went to visit the Carlyles, Jenny (Jane?) leaped up and kissed him. I have no idea whether Hunt ever collaborated this version of poem's inspiration but it makes a cute story.
