When the moving vans took away a life
bundling it in storage, turning out fly swabbed light
when the house stood empty and of us, nothing remained
her death seemed to have resisted claim
yet she was no more there than mouse who leaves behind footprint and soft down of hair, gone beyond the floorboards
her family cleared out and dusted her remains, placed away in a china cabinet for someone
many years from now to produce a much touched pawn ticket, and re-varnish
she wondered
would they thrive without her?
in time, will her children recall the best of her?
or those days she stood tired and grumpy, keeping warm by the oven avoiding world’s bidding and invite
it was her shame
to waste so much time
if she had known she would have stepped from waxen kitchen like fire bird, gathered them in her arms and driven to the coast
to watch the rise and fall of life crashing on wave
and smell the turn of life, brimming with wet salt
she would have seen within her the burgeoning canker and cast it like a bottle of cobalt blue
out into the surrendering molt of waves, hoping it would lose itself and not return to erase her, premature and cruel
a reminder we are visitors
to this shore
not long in our stay
often missing our purpose, locked away in effort and grind, mowing lawns, picking up, wiping down, staring out into the immaculate disorder
she would have said to her children, take your shoes off, wriggle your toes in, feel the sand, the undone clasp, the undone movement
into life and laughter and sorrow, creating lines of wonder on our cheeks, run and run until your bird chest burns
scream into the sound
cover yourself with sun and never
ever
come up for air
(image from: http://www.saidthegramophone.com/archives/2010_06.php)
Reblogged this on thefeatheredsleep.
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Loved this post. It’s very emotional
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Dear Frida thank you so much! (Yes it is!) xo
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You’ve made me wonder if my mom would have, if she could have —
“staring out into the immaculate disorder
she would have said to her children, take your shoes off, wriggle your toes in, feel the sand, the undone clasp, the undone movement
into life and laughter and sorrow, creating lines of wonder on our cheeks, run and run until your bird chest burns
scream into the sound
cover yourself with sun and never
ever
come up for air”
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So many people who may have done more, if they had known or thought, more could be done
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Or even just foreseen the end of their chance to influence their children as something that might happen sooner than they’d ever imagined. I wonder if the knowledge of an impending end necessarily frees up our expectations of what should be. I guess I’ve never — as a daily philosophy — believed that life is short. There’s an eye-opening thought.
Thank you, Candice. Time to examine what’s left of my time. ❤
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Beautiful, C. We are all just visitors, indeed, needing to “cast [burgeoning canker] aside like a bottle of cobalt blue out into the surrendering molt of waves”. Nothing beats wisdom told in your gorgeous imagery.
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You flatter me when you yourself create worlds I wish to live in literally! (Thank you my friend, thank you so much)
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Pingback: Come up for air | wwwpalfitness
I did love that last line- ‘cover yourself with sun and never ever come up for air’. We have so little time, don’t we?
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Exactly.
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I thought your post today was freaking FANTASTIC
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Beautiful piece. I guess one never knows when life will end, so if there is something you should be doing, want to be doing and your not, you should do it now. Save your regrets. Remember whats important in life.
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Exactly. Live now. Be present. Don’t put important things off. Easier said than done, but sometimes we think the important things are money and status and they’re more to do with our souls and heart.
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So sad an moving.
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Such salutary regret, with superb images – like the mouse and the hair
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😉 I had fun! (thank you so much)
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I could quote so many lines, but these are the grit and core of this piece:
“she wondered
would they thrive without her?
in time, will her children recall the best of her?
or those days she stood tired and grumpy, keeping warm by the oven avoiding world’s bidding and invite
it was her shame
to waste so much time
if she had known she would have stepped from waxen kitchen like fire bird, gathered them in her arms and driven to the coast
to watch the rise and fall of life crashing on wave”
I love this one. I do indeed believe it is now added to a list of favorites from you. Sound, solid, and incredible writing. The image is amazing too.
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Thank you so much my friend and beside friend, the hand within the hand of sunlight carried through the darkness
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*big hugs* You are most welcome.
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BIG hug back to my beautiful friend.
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Thank you. ❤
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It’s you I should be thanking – every time – and I do in my way – I do.
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You do.
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I adore this piece…C 🙂 Lovely lovely lovely….can I say lovely again….lovely. I am always amazed by children which live each like the last day….lost in thought…in adventures….time is precious before they march up stares in pouting stomps to go to bed…they want to suck it all ..and everything is new and they want that newness in them …adults truly need to heed that childlike call to arms….
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Totally agreed and you put it BEAUTIFULLY which surprised me NOT ! 😉 xo
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Great read
powerful images
As always Sheldon
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Dear sheldon thank you so much my friend I am so grateful to you for reading xo
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