Sunday, September 09, 2007

A Living Patchwork Quilt

[inspired by a prompt from Weekend Wordsmith]

Just because you put it on your bed does not make it a quilt. It is just a coverlet unless the layers are sewn or tied together.




A Living Patchwork Quilt

Nature selected the various shades,

all tones of green and brown and tan.

A patchwork of pattern that glows and then fades

with seasonal shifts in the habits of man.

When fields were first plowed there was nary a plan

for the artwork result that we see overhead.

The quilting was done by the kin of each clan,

as they eked out a living from dawn until bed.

The years of the sons and the daughters were thread,

stitching together the heart of this place,

'til one day the call of the cities instead

left fewer on farms to continue to face

that with rain there is growth and with drought there is death.

Farm-folk stitch on with their every breath.


16 comments:

Mediterranean Views said...

Beautiful photo, and analogy...SO enjoyed your poem. I am re-introducing myself to it so I appreciated your comment on my blog about mine. This one is special. Amy at Med Views

kimbofo said...

This is wonderful. The picture alone is brilliant, but the words lend it extra impact. Thanks for sharing.

Michele sent me.

http://kimbofo.typepad.com

sister AE said...

Thanks, Amy. I'm glad you think so.


Hello, Kim. Thanks for the visit, and for the kind words.

-E said...

Wonderful poem. And the quilt looks wonderful. I've always wanted to take some sort of quilting class.

Wandered over from Michele's.

Bonnie Jacobs said...

Hey, you deserve the kind words! I'm thrilled with this take on patchwork quilt, and I love the photo. It makes me think of Illinois, like flying out of O'Hare. I'm glad you are hanging in there with the Weekend Wordsmith.

sister AE said...

Hello, -E. Thanks. The "quilt" pictured is actually a portion of a satellite photo of farmland.

Thanks, Bonnie. It is actually somewhat further downstate in Illinois (and turned sideways for aesthetic reasons). I'm glad too - I am also working on the "catching up" with older prompts, but it may take a while given that work is so busy in September.

Tawcan said...

Hi thanx for visiting my blog the other day. Wonderful poem you have there.

sister AE said...

Hi, Tawcan. You are welcome and thanks.

Pauline said...

I've flown over patches of earth that looked like this but the earth quilt image never occured to me. I'm glad it did to you - loved the poem; the rhythm, the rhyming, the way the whole things blankets my imagination and warms me.

sister AE said...

Thanks, Pauline. It should be more or less a sonnet and I struggled with the rhythm so I'm glad you like it. Once my mind caught the idea of tying layers together with patchwork, somehow this just seemed right.

paisley said...

my goodness but i have been missing out... this was exceptional,, visually as well as in the beautiful picture you pained with your words... and a sonnet no less,, this was exemplar...

Jo said...

I love both the beautiful poem and the amazing farmland quilt. Thanks for stopping by my blog today. I'll be back here later to read more. Jo

sister AE said...

Hello, Paisley. Thank you so much! I am pleased that you like it.


Hello, Jo. Thanks and you are welcome here anytime. I'll certainly be back to your site.

Susan Tidwell said...

love it!

nary a plan

stitch on with their every breath.


the words paint a picture of place and time and a patchwork quilt...

Thanks for sharing! (found you thru weekend wordsmith)

sister AE said...

Thanks, Susan. I'm pretty pleased with this one, too. I found several people through Bonnie's sites myself.

paisley said...

since i cannot locate an email address for you i will try this method of communication... i want to very possibly use this fayette patchwork photo on a reader submission on my blog the ink pot... however since it is not credited and i cannot locate it on google,, i am wondering if it is yours and if so ,, can i use it and how would you like it credited... please get back to me as i have already emailed it and two other optional photos to the author for her ok...

jodi
whypaisley@gmail.com