The Writer

Fancy that...
Being able to spend the whole morning
Writing a poem!

My mother's hands
Were etched in a network of tiny cracks.
Salt of the earth, the doctor said. 
She thought it meant he loved her.

It doesn't matter whether 
I write or not, I said...
Well, on one level it does,
Words whirling away into empty space.

A false Spring hangs in the air;
It's hard to keep from donning summer clothes.

He killed himself when he'd killed his wife.
(The tumor was malignant)
And the child sent away to some sister.
But his kind hands...My mother
Whispers again to believe it.

The typewriter clatters in a small room,
Closed door,
Soft light through the figured glass.
Copyright © | Year Posted 2022

Poem

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Nair Avatar
August 10, 2022 at 10:45 AM
Honestly, I couldn't fathom this poem fully. Yet, certainly, there us something haunting and captivating about it, that one can't resist re-reading it. And isn't that good poetry?
Mccann Avatar
August 29, 2022 at 4:20 AM
I'm late in replying. I had to think. The poem rose by itself and I, too, tried to understand. The naivety of the mother and that of the daughter are starkly different and in that abyss I feel great sadness. Elizabeth
Slaughter Avatar
August 7, 2022 at 11:11 AM
This is a captivating read, Elizabeth. And I wholeheartedly agree with Gershon's comment.
Mccann Avatar
August 7, 2022 at 3:38 PM
Thanks, Jim. This is one of those that arise by themselves and I can only stand back and let it go! Elizabeth
Wolf Avatar
July 27, 2022 at 8:50 PM
So much drama and emotion packed tightly into this write, Elizabeth. A FAVE for me. Thank you, Gershon
Mccann Avatar
July 30, 2022 at 2:41 AM
I'm so glad you like it. It's close to my heart. Elizabeth
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