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Hello Friends,
It's Friday--and time for some poetry! Thank you, Kat for hosting our round-up this week. Send us some sun, girl. I've been stuck in frozen snow and ice for days. No school this week until tomorrow on a delayed opening. I can't complain. I've caught up on some "me time."
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| https://famouspaintings.com/featured/the-washerwoman-kazimir-malevich.html |
Bare Feet
Are foundation
to her scaffold of bones,
sinew, muscle
working shoulders,
pounding hands,
scrubbing fingers,
throaty hum.
This is the first
and best part
of a day.
Scents of sweat,
work, worry, and play
rise from steam
as washerwoman
coaxes soap into seams,
collars, peaks and,
valleys of laundry.
This copper wash tub
matches her strength,
paints her forearms
and knuckles with patina.
She is industry with heart
making clean what higher born
but weaker made souls
have soiled.
She is necessary
glad to be of use
and the coin she earns
from washing.
You've drawn me right into the moment, Linda, and I am that bare footed washerwoman. Word choice is wonderful; scaffold, sinew, throaty, 'coaxes soap into seams, collars, peaks and valleys'. Strong sensory images. (Kazimir Malevich put such a load on those feet.) PS I am jealous of your snow! ❄️
ReplyDeleteIt's been unusually mild here, which would be nice, except for the never-ending rain - it was the wettest December on record, which, with the grey skies that accompany all the rain, has been making for a rather depressing winter!
ReplyDeleteLinda, Getting out into a sunshine world today felt so liberating. Your poem Bare Feet had me intrigued. These lines spoke to me: paints her forearms/and knuckles with patina/She is industry with heart...You not only described the washerwoman but gave her a strong purpose in life. If the world could only find words to commend people perhaps we would be better off.
ReplyDeleteWishing you sunshine very soon, Linda! The latest weather has been hard to believe it happened! This poem makes me want to applaud, for all the women it celebrates, the ones with "industry with heart", and I love those words showing the truth of the "higher born"! Terrific!
ReplyDeleteHey there SnowScene dweller who wants to go around in bare feet. I luv how you followed up your One.Little.Word. with this strong painting. Your draft is compelling & I hope you keep at it. I have a question about her - is she possibly cleaning her family’s clothes? I’m wrongly without my readers at the moment, so my eyes can’t tell me the painting’s title. Evenings of recent, Paolo & I are watching “The Darrell’s on Corfu,” so I can imagine this as a scene set from The Mediterranean. So glad you found this image.
ReplyDeleteLinda, so glad that you found a way to carve out a little time for yourself. Thank you for sharing your powerful poem to accompany that stunning painting. Your word choice (coaxes soap into seams, knuckles with patina, making clean … what weaker made souls have soiled) hits home. I disagree that this is a “drafty” draft! : )
ReplyDeleteAlso, thank you for the wonderful “year of the snake” card. Your poem twisted back and forth upon itself just like a snake. You are so clever!
Wow, Linda. That's marvelous. "She is industry with heart" is a great line! I may have to try an art-inspired poem. I was also surprised to see that the artist is Malevich; I'd have guessed a Mexican painter.
ReplyDeleteThis is a really interesting take on this painting Linda! I enjoyed being inside your experience of the art. "Industry with heart" resonates with me today-- being able to create/work and feel the satisfaction/benefit of that work is so grounding. Your poem reminds me of how I feel preserving food for my family-- happy to create something that will be useful to those I love.
ReplyDeleteYour words pound with emotion, Linda. "She is industry with heart" and "necessary" makes me think she is joyous in her task.
ReplyDeleteI love how the copper pot colors her arms with patina - so powerful. Thank you for sharing this poem. I'm glad you've been having some "me" time - it's a good thing when the weather is poor.
ReplyDeleteI wasn't sure how barefoot was going to work, but you've made it "a foundation for her scaffold of bones." The word choices in this poem are spot on. You place us there in the painting with her, working hard, with purpose.
ReplyDeleteStrong poem Linda, the washerwoman in the image and your poem makes me think of working women and especially immigrant working women and what lies ahead, thanks.
ReplyDelete"scaffold of bones" is such an interesting image (and sound). So glad we got some extra days!
ReplyDeleteOh gosh, Linda! My favorite word in this entire ode is "patina" -- It evokes something hidden, brought forth to shine. I love the whole story you've created from art.
ReplyDeleteThere are so many fabulous words and phrases in this poem. I love the art and am wowed by the story you wove around her. Barefoot has taken off at a sprint in 2025! Wow!
ReplyDeleteBeautiful, Linda! The copper tub and its effect on this woman really jumped out at me. What a way to be off and running with your word of the year!
ReplyDeleteThis is the best part of her day. The scaffold of her bones. Thank you for this.
ReplyDeleteWow, Linda. So much to love in your poem! Of course I'm swooning over "patina," too, and I very much appreciate "peaks and,/valleys of laundry." Thanks for the inspirations as always!!
ReplyDeleteYour words sent me back to the painting over and over again -- truly a great pairing!
ReplyDelete