Strickland Gillilan (1869–1954) was an American poet and humorist. He is most famous for the poem The Reading Mother which remains a common sentiment on Mother's Day. He is also recognized as the author of Lines on the Antiquity of Microbes, said to be the shortest poem ever written. Much of his work is public domain and is often reproduced in greeting cards.
I had a mother who read to me
Sagas of pirates who scoured the sea.
Cutlasses clenched in their yellow teeth;
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Don't be foolish and get sour when things don't just come your way-
Don't you be a pampered baby and declare, 'Now I won't play!'
Just go grinning on and bear it;
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