Eyes see and ears hear, but what exactly is the purpose of a patella?
These little rhymes will help you identify your anatomy–
and turn you into a bard of the body.
VESSEL VERSE
Blood vessel, blood vessel
Which one are you?
A vein or an artery,
Which of the two?
An artery takes blood
Away from the heart
To parts like the brain
So you can stay smart.
A vein takes your blood
To the heart, not away.
Together they form
A blood expressway.
ODE TO THE SPLEEN
Some say the spleen
Looks like a purple fist.
It helps to filter blood,
but here’s a funny twist:
If you lost your spleen,
You could live just fine.
Your liver would work harder.
Still, I’ll hang on to mine.
A PUZZLING PIECE
Appendix, appendix,
What do you do?
Some say," Nothing."
Could that be true?
You’re shaped like a worm,
But you are not bait.
Are you just useless?
That is a debate.
Your role in our health
Is still pretty hazy
As body parts go
You are rather lazy
But there is one thing
That is not in doubt–
If you’re set to burst
You have to come out.
PATELLA POESY
Every fella
Has a patella.
He may be in doubt
Till you point it out.
So then you reveal
That it’s no big deal,
It has one more name:
"Kneecap" means the same.
UVULA RAP
That dangly thing
At the back of your throat
Is called a uvula,
So please take note.
It’s really just
A flap of skin.
It helps you swallow
When you put food in.
When you go to bed
And you breath in deep,
It can vibrate, and then
You snore in your sleep!
POO-ETRY IN MOTION
The small and large intestines
Come at the end of the line
Of the system of digestion
That starts when you dine.
When food leaves your stomach,
The next step is ambitious:
The small intestine breaks it down
And absorbs what is nutritious.
Then the large intestine
Has its work to do.
It absorbs most of the water,
Leaving you with poo
LIVER LIMERICK
There once was a man from Nantucket,
Whose liver made bile by the bucket
It broke down food’s fats
And now you know that’s
Why he’d no reason to chuck it.