Sunday, July 21, 2013

SUMMER IN MILFORD


Tall maples lace fingers across Connecticut roads
their gnarled feet uprooting sidewalks
July at my grandparent's house
the scallions grow wild by a sloping fence
dandelions shake loose their seeds---
tiny parachutes snagging on wet grass.


Afternoons when sunlight spirals through flaps
of hand embroidered curtains
we snap jigsaw puzzles together
on a card table with unsure legs.
Grandpa's raspy tales of The Great War
Tin Lizzies and gas ration tickets
lost years he can never replace.
Grandmother, white reflection in the glass
cabinet where bone china is a memory
of Christmas dinners and wedding parties.

At night we trap firebugs in mason jars
their yellow lights winking like a distant city.
My sisters and I share the fold-out bed
in a musty basement cluttered with steamer
trunks and back issues of National Geographic.
Frayed slippers of our grandparents
whisper their age across dry floor
boards in a bedroom that smells
of mothballs and crushed roses.

Outside, the moon surprises us with its youthful
face beyond dimming stars where clouds
form shadows in the Maple trees.



8 comments:

  1. A poem full of memories... it reminded me of times spent at my grandmothers... sitting at her vanity and applying her dark red lipstick with no precision... putting on plays and singing out of tune... fun days, fun memories...

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    1. That's wonderful! I love the lipstick comment!

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  2. Those were the days when grandparents entertained the family whenever they came to visit. The clattering of plates for breakfast and dinner. The smell of good home cooked food. Games being played by all. The pure silence at night whilst everyone squashed into bed together with toes sticking out. Beautiful post and what a memory.

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    1. I love those images, RPD. That's EXACTLY what it was like!

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  3. You really took me back. Grandparent relationships are so special. The images are imprinted on our brains for our entire lives. And I wouldn't have it any other way.

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    1. I can only hope my own grandchildren will feel the same way one day.

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  4. Beautiful Pictures! Im now following via Bloglovin and GFC! I would love for you to come check out my blog!

    Amanda @ Happily Ever After
    http://www.karlshappilyeverafter.blogspot.com/

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    1. Glad you liked the photography and thanks for the follow!

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