I have done music programs with elders and kids for decades, and many in both groups love the song, "Puff The Magic Dragon."

In the early 1980’s I was doing singalongs in a hospital children’s ward. I mostly worked with children who were dying (and knew it) and their families. In my first session, with a 7-year-old girl dying of brain cancer and her parents, they requested “Puff the Magic Dragon.”

As we sang I realized that the parents were identifying with Puff, and the child with little Jackie Paper. Sad endings can be OK, but in this situation it was too much! Jackie Paper comes around no more and so Puff ceases his fearless roar, bows his head in sorrow and weeps, stops going to play along the Cherry Lane, can’t be brave anymore, and sadly slips back into his cave. Yikes!

This difficult situation kept happening, because this is such a wonderful and widely beloved song. So eventually I wrote an additional double verse to add at the end, not changing the original (see below). I’ve tried to get this out to people who are doing music with sick kids, and to others, too; since we all face separation and loss.

Peter Straus
Recreation Therapist
El Sobrante, California
pstraus@igc.org
(415) 939-5628

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Puff the Magic Dragon
Copyright by Peter Yarrow and Leonard Lipton
Final two verses by Peter Straus, Copyright 1982, 1984

Puff the magic dragon lived by the sea,
And frolicked in the autumn mist in a land called Honah Lee.
Little Jackie Paper loved that rascal Puff,
And brought him strings and sealing wax and other fancy stuff, oh,

CHORUS:
Puff the magic dragon lived by the sea,
And frolicked in the autumn mist in a land called Honah Lee.
Puff the magic dragon lived by the sea,
And frolicked in the autumn mist in a land called Honah Lee.

Together they would travel on a boat with billowed sail.
Jackie kept a lookout perched on Puff’s gigantic tail.
Noble kings and princes would bow whene’er they came.
Pirate ships would lower their flag when Puff roared out his name, oh,

(CHORUS)

A dragon lives forever, but not so little boys.
Painted wings and giant’s rings make way for other toys.
One gray night it happened, Jackie Paper came no more;
And Puff, that mighty dragon, he ceased his fearless roar.

His head was bent in sorrow; green scales fell like rain,
Puff no longer went to play along the cherry lane.
Without his life-long friend, Puff could not be brave,
So Puff, that mighty dragon, sadly slipped into his cave, oh,

(CHORUS)

Late that night, Puff had a dream that Jackie came back again.
Jackie gave Puff a hug and a kiss, saying, “Don’t be sad, my friend;”
“ ‘Cause I love you, and you love me, and our love will never die.”
“It hurts so bad to leave you, Puff, but I had to say good-bye.”

The next day Puff walked out in the sun, he felt so brave and strong.
The dream gave him a power and the earth gave him her song.
Jackie was happy wherever he went, and so was his friend Puff.
And every time we sing this song, they’re here together with us, oh,

(CHORUS)