Long-Leg Lou and Short-Leg Sue

 

“Long-Leg Lou and Short-Leg-Sue

Went for a walk down the avenue,

Laughin’ and jokin’ like good friends do,

Long-Leg Lou and Short-Leg Sue.

Says Long-Leg Lou to Short-Leg Sue,

‘Can’t you walk any faster than you do?

It really drives me out of my mind

That I’m always in front, and you’re always behind.

Says Short-Leg Sue to Long-Leg Lou,

‘I’ll walk as fast as I’m meant to do.’

‘Then I’ll go walkin’ with someone new,’

Says Long-Leg Lou to Short Leg Sue.

Now Long-Leg Lou, he walks alone,

Looking for someone with legs like his own,

And sometimes he thinks of those warm afternoons

Back when we went walkin’ with Short-Leg Sue.

And Short-Leg Sue strolls down the street

Hand in hand with Slow-Foot Pete,

And they take small steps and they do just fine,

And no one’s in front and no one’s behind.”

-Shell Silverstein

There is a lot to be said for this poem. Although it is a short and sweet children’s poem, it speaks volumes about relationships, patience, and understanding. As a kid, I thrived off Shel Silverstein’s poems. Falling Up and Where the Sidewalk Ends were two of the first occupants in my bookshelf. Silverstein’s books were abundant with witticisms, silly rhymes, and- above all- lessons that have persisted into my adult life. I am a strong believer in children’s literature and its power in developing our world views and shaping our virtues. I think it is important to revisit poems, stories, and books we loved as kids and reread them. Sometimes they are fun, silly things with no meaning beyond what is explicit. More often, they are powerful and teeming with the authors’ truths. 

“Long-Leg Lou and Short-Leg Sue” is the poem I remember most from my childhood. To me, this poem is about valuing relationships- romantic, friendly, or familial. To walk beside someone is no easy task. It takes time, growth, and tremendous love to deeply understand and cherish another person. Even the relationships that we are “given”- mothers, father, sisters, and brothers- require continuous work.

No worthwile relationship is achieved without communication and compromise. “Long-Leg Lou and Short-Leg Sue” tells the tale of two friends unable to to accomplish either. Long-Leg Lou is unable to communicate his frustration in a gentle way; he is angry and accusatory. Short-Leg Sue is unwilling to compromise to lessen Lou’s burden. Unable to exercise patience, and unwilling to make sacrifice, each loses the other.

At some point in our lives we have all either been (or will be) in either of these positions. When we are tasked with communicating, we must remember to be forward but kind. We must remember that if there is something we are dissatisfied with in a relationship, no healthy change will be borne from anger or accusation. We must understand our partner’s perspective and speak to them as we ourselves would wish to be spoken to. Compromise is the more difficult feat of the two, and sometimes we are more willing to lose out on something beautiful and real than to make the sacrifices necessary to maintain it. When we find ourselves in these situations, we have to remind ourselves the value of the relationship. We have to remember the time spent nurturing and developing it, the experiences shared with the other person, and the importance of keeping them in our lives. Not all relationships are healthy- and yes, some are worth letting go- but the ones that are special, the ones that are worth holding on to require us to exercise selflessness. 

So next time we are angry or hurt or annoyed, next time we would like nothing more then to be selfish or cruel or dismissive, we must remind ourselves how difficult it is to find a person worth sharing a part of our lives with. We must remember the value of healthy relationships and take a moment to consider whether this one is worth losing. It is easy to be angry and it is incredibly difficult to forgive. But sometimes we must find it within each of ourselves to do so. We must value what is ours and keep it close- whether we are Long-Leg Lou or Short-Leg Sue.