I will offer you a sneak peek at one of the poems this book offers. This poem was written to commemorate the folk art that I often admired in a local antique store named Salt Marsh Antiques in Rowley, Massachusetts.
Having moved to Connecticut, Christopher Gurshin has his own website and now shares images of his work there. I've asked his permission to occasionally share one of his paintings here, to accompany my words. He, in turn, has my permission to share my words with his work. Here is the poem, and an image of one of his paintings that represents those I admired for so many years:
Then, There
by Terry Crawford PalardyAs though you are there, in your painting, you share
The balance of work and rest earned
The scenes you portray of a faded, soft day
Or an evening just fallen, time turned.
In your quieted hues, you offer hushed cues
Of the values of effort and strength,
The beautiful lines of the simpler times,
sunlit workdays of limited length.
As a glacier will melt to reveal what's concealed
In its crystal clear center, the past,
So the water you use when creating your hues
Paints a moment so pure it will last.
Time is still, in your work, without rush, in your brush
As you labor alone, in that place.
I work, too, but with pen. In my thoughts, it is then
In that quieter world, I keep pace.
When my pen's lost the view, I can find it anew,
For you paint it, as though you are there
What your work shows reminds us,
though struggles may find us,
There's a rest that is earned, one we share…
The same rest that was earned then and there
I would love to receive a review of this poem, or of others in Poetry to Share, Vol. II. You can leave a review here as a comment (see 'comments' link below) or at Amazon or Goodreads, or via email (see header for my email: needlesandpens@comcast.net.) Though I've sent this book out to dozens of customers and friends, no one has yet written with feedback. Will you be the first?
I am not a poet myself, but I enjoy reading poetry.
ReplyDeleteWhat I loved about this poem was the simple beauty of it. Phrases such as:
As a glacier will melt to reveal what's concealed
In its crystal clear center, the past,
and
When my pen's lost the view, I can find it anew,
For you paint it, as though you are there
I like the comparison between the writer and the painter.
Thank you Kathryn. If you enjoy poetry, you have the soul of a poet, and you can't ask for more than that. Your own poetry will emerge eventually!
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