Robert Lawson Quotes

“He didn’t look where he was sitting and instead of sitting on the nice cool grass in the shade he sat on a bumble bee. Well if you were a bumble bee and a bull sat on you what would you do? You would sting him. And that is just what this bee did to Ferdinand.”

“But not Ferdinand. When he got to the middle of the ring he saw the flowers in all the lovely ladies’ hair and he just sat down quietly and smelled.”

“What a day it was! Flags were flying, bands were playing... and all the lovely ladies had flowers in their hair. They had a parade into the bull ring.”

“They called him Ferdinand the Fierce and all the Banderilleros were afraid of him and the Picadores were afraid of him and the Matador was scared stiff.”

“As the years went by Ferdinand grew and grew until he was very big and strong.”

″ He ran around puffing and snorting, butting, and pawing the ground as if he were crazy. The five men saw him and they all shouted with joy. Here was the largest and fiercest bull of all. Just the one for the bull fights in Madrid!”

“So they had to take Ferdinand home.”

“He wouldn’t fight and be fierce no matter what they did. He just sat and smelled. And the Banderilleros were made and the Picadores were madder and the Matador was so made he cried because he couldn’t show off with his cape and sword. ”

“He liked to sit just quietly and smell the flowers.”

“And for all I know he is sitting there still, under his favorite cork tree, smelling the flowers just quietly. ”

″‘You’re right, ma’am,’ I sez. ‘They’re hungry all right, as you’ll learn to your sorrow,’ I sez, ‘when them vegetables come up.‘”

“She’ll be out there, right along of all the rest of us, a-lookin’ and a-watchin’.”

“What I hope is they ain’t going to have one of them new-fangled garbage cans that’s buried in the ground, them ones with heavy iron lids. Why, they’re downright dangerous, oughtn’t to be allowed.”

“He sure had enough of garbidge, time the maid come out next morning. She got enough of Skunk, too, when she opened up that lid.”

“Well, it’s high time there were new Folks in the Big House, high time, and I do hope they’re planting Folks, not shiftless like the last ones. Three years now since there’s been a good garden on this place.”

″‘Naow Mollie, don’t take on so,’ consoled Uncle Analdas. ‘Ain’t no sense to it. Why with that bumpity, twisty driveway full of holes like it is, couldn’t no dingblasted movin’ van make speed enough to danger a box turtle.‘”

″...she cried, ‘Moving vans,’ and burst into tears. She threw her apron over her head and wept for some time, demanding that Little Georgie be confined to the burrow on the morrow until all danger was past.”

″‘Now my dear,’ said Father, ‘do try to adopt a more optimistic attitude. This news of Georgie’s may promise the approach of a more felicitous and bountiful era.‘”