Monday, April 1, 2019

April Poetry Month - Day 1



             Moving into the beginning of the book. This time, "Haunting Your Childhood"

             Remember to share:


Tabatha Yeatts has created a link to poems teachers and librarians can print for poetry month, titled "Poetry in The Halls". I'm grateful to be one of the poets!

Jama Rattigan has a post HERE with many poets' goals for April.


The Progressive Poem schedule can be found on the right!




Blooming Comes With Thorns

In World War II, my grandfather, “Pop”,
offered two sons to fight,
gave up a son-in-law,
my father,
to the Pacific Ocean. He was a pilot,
shot down, gone.
Now Pop had another daughter
to rear, me.
My mother and I moved in with her parents,
Retirement from the farm to town
gave a fixed income, expertise
used in a feed store.
His small warehouse across the street
became my roller rink.
I skated in between the palettes
of animal feed sacks, Nutrena,
Purina for cattle, goats, chickens.
Sharp curves on the smooth concrete.
music drifting from the office radio,
pretending performer.
This sunny day,
I rushed from school, 
put on the roller skates.
You know, those clamp-on skates
tightened with the key that hung
around the neck on a string.
I yelled goodbye to Grandma,
and raced across to see Pop
to skate the school day away.
He waited across the street, watching.
He leaned down, not to hug,
but to grab, reach around,
and give me a swat.
We walked right back home.
No skating, only tears –
I hadn’t looked both ways!
It’s the only spanking I remember,
the time I started to grow up,
learned to pay attention,
to take care of myself.


Linda Baie ©





12 comments:

  1. Oh, Linda! What a powerful memory! Thank you for sharing it and for kicking off Poetry Month in fine style.

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    1. You are welcome, Jane. This is going to be fun!

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  2. This poem is a memoir poem. Even though your title warned me, I did not imagine how it would end with a spank. Sometimes love does come with thorns, the kind that are good for you.

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  3. Just wow! These memories - I remember those skates with keys. I could never get them to work properly!

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    1. Ha ha, I agree. They were a challenge, Cheriee. Thanks!

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  4. What a treasure trove of images, Linda, and what a gift to remember and share. I love those lines about you skating...and your grandfather's love. xx

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    1. Thanks, Amy. It is a memory from so many years ago, stuck! And I do know my grandfather loved me a lot.

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  5. What a memory - that spank was a surprise. I do remember loving to roller skate, clamping the skates to different shoes, using the key. I'm guessing you looked both ways from then on.

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    1. Indeed I did, Jama. It's interesting to me what memories stick, not always good nor always bad, but they do stay. I did look both ways after that! Thanks!

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  6. I love your phrase - "to skate the school day away." And then, "No skating, only tears -" I'm sure he knew how important the skating was to you, but even more important to him was your safety. Hard lessons on the the way to growing up.

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    1. From a far away memory, I see the love underneath, but it was a shock! Thanks, Ramona.

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