| Sammy Snake had always thought That he could be an astronaut. He dreamed of flying to the stars And cobra cuties found on Mars. He would practice how to land By jumping coiled onto the sand. And he would hiss a lunar tune Like he was falling to the moon. He knew with every breath he'd take The space program could use a snake. Someday they'd realize the need And seek him out, oh, yes, indeed! But as his little snake heart yearned, His applications were returned. He'd hiss a sigh, then force a grin, And write to volunteer again. He went to Florida with friends, Way out there where the swamp land ends. Astronaut snakes can train, you see, Hanging out in a Cypress tree. You grab a limb right by your tail And dangle there, then swoop and sail. A body learns the twists and bends From hanging in the strong sea winds. Sam's mom was there, right by his side, She got some cloth and sewed with pride. When done she thought he looked quite cute In his sleek silver snake space suit Soon came a scary situation: While docking at a huge space station, A spaceship found the door was stuck, They tried and tried with little luck. The door was tilted to one side And the opening was three inches wide. The size was causing great alarm— Too small to allow a human arm. They had to get inside that space To slide the docking door in place. One NASA guy said, "Goodness sake, We have ten letters from that snake.!" They sent this message, "Holy cow, We need you, Sammy , and right now! We've sent a jet that you can take To the launch site, our Astrosnake! His mom freeze-dried frog bologna And a fresh new batch of Miceroni. With his fang brush and underwear, Sam packed his bag and was out of there! The NASA folks were all around When Sammy's jet sailed to the ground. Sammy Snake was proud and glad To be there on the launching pad. Butterflies flew through his heart When he heard the countdown start. Ignition time! And then the blast! He was heading into space at last. The booster rocket fired and then He felt the extra thrust begin. And soon before he could absorb it Our Astrosnake went into orbit. He reached the space station at last And fixing it went really fast. Sam slipped inside with space to spare And spliced a broken wire with care. He sent the signal, "AOK." And then , as he went on his way, Quite suddenly he had a scare- A UFO was hovering there. With a closer look, for goodness sakes, He saw the ship was filled with snakes. And from their smiles he had a hunch That this was not a hostile bunch. They sent a message loud and clear, "Sammy Snake, you're welcome here. The United States is finally cool, Cause here is space, it's snakes that rule. "Our life up here's spectacular As we fly about from star to star. On your next trip you must not miss A visit to our Planet Hiss. "Since NASA has an Astrosnake We'll share with you the routes to take. Tell folks on earth you will unravel The mysteries of all space travel." So Sammy's special dream came true. He's Captain of our Space Snake Crew. On the planet Earth and the planet Hiss He is welcomed with a hug and kiss. Now members of the human race Can travel safely into space. And they all know, make no mistake, About persistent Sammy Snake. —Grandpa Tucker |