Bobby Shaftoe

I was out doing my regular errands a few days ago and noticed a woman wearing jeans was trying on shoes.  The shoes were pumps that were adorned with buckles.  Surely I'm not the only one that sees things and has "flashbacks".  This particular incident immediatley brought the nursery rythme, Bobby Shaftoe, to mind.

Growing up, my mom read to my little sis and I every night before bed.  She read us nursey rhythes, stories, something.  At some point she would read us Bobby Shaftoe.  I cannot find the book it was in but I do seem to remember it being in a book and not something she read to us from memory.  I recall the page with the picture of "pretty Bobby Shaftoe" who looked quite a bit like the Quaker Oats man.  Now as an adult, I find the use of "pretty" quite funny.  I was talking to my mom about this on Sunday and she found it funny too.

I can't remember if it was me or my sister that became obsessed with this nursery rythme, but we asked her to tell this one night after night.  She did and when I asked her on Sunday who would request this, she told me it was usually a request of my little sis who always had a bedtime story request.  As she read the line "He'll come back and marry me", we would then have our "no, marry me" debate.  My mom and two little girls arguing over the fictious Bobby Shaftoe and which one of us he'd marry.  We always won when we told my mom he couldn't marry her because she was already married.

Bobby Shaftoe’s gone to sea,

Silver buckles on his knees;

He’ll come back and marry me,

Pretty Bobby Shaftoe