Leaning, Lending a Hand
There is a way
the light slants
in the late afternoon
or fresh after a muted rain,
against the moss painted side
of a sagging shed, like the light
was leaning to lend a hand to help
an old enfeebled friend to stand.
Shadow shrouded,
the surrounding trees shift and
sway, drift and nod; old cronies
of the ancient shed, lifting and
lowering their palsied heads,
having their say.
Iva E. Reed
1980
in the late afternoon
or fresh after a muted rain,
against the moss painted side
of a sagging shed, like the light
was leaning to lend a hand to help
an old enfeebled friend to stand.
Shadow shrouded,
the surrounding trees shift and
sway, drift and nod; old cronies
of the ancient shed, lifting and
lowering their palsied heads,
having their say.
Iva E. Reed
1980
This poem is full of pictures.
ReplyDeleteYes, Lisa. I so love it.
ReplyDeleteThat is a great poem and so very fitting for today as it was rather grey and shadowy here.
ReplyDeleteAnd we had lots of sunshine for a change, Staci!
ReplyDeleteDescribes my walk and what I observed this past week perfectly!
ReplyDeleteThank you for sharing!
Joanne
Isn't that lovely!
ReplyDeleteLove this - reminds me of many of the sheds I pass when driving on my country roads.
ReplyDeleteHi Nan,
ReplyDeleteI am not a poetry buff, but I do like to read occasionally.
This must be one of the nicest poems I have read. The images it conjures up are vivid and real, it is short, and the words used are beautifully put together.
A real find, thank you.
Yvonne
Joanne, Geranium Cat, One Woman, and Fiction Books,
ReplyDeleteI thank each of you for reading the poem, caring for it, and taking the time to leave a note. Iva is an old friend of ours, and we think her work is very special.
I really love it when you post poems Nan. This one is so lovely.
ReplyDeleteHad not heard of the author and want to look her up.
It is full of pictures -- as one of the above comments said.
Oh -- I just re-read all of the comments and see that Ivy is your friend. How lovely.
ReplyDeleteI meant to ask: Is your beautiful home full of books of poetry? If not do you have a website you go to? (I don't have much room for very many "forever" books -- just my birding and atlases etc and a very few that I couldn't let go when we sold the house -- and, of course, room for the current reads from the library or wherever (to return or give away).
I still seem to need those daily books even with my new toy (Kindle). I think you said that as well!
Sallie, I am really happy you liked the poem. If you click on the poems tab under the blog header and scroll down, you'll see a couple more by Iva Reed. Yes, I do own a bunch of poetry books.
ReplyDeleteI love these words! Thanks so much Nan.
ReplyDeleteSharon Lovejoy Writes from Sunflower House and a Little Green Island
I'm so very glad you liked it, Sharon!
ReplyDeleteSigh.
ReplyDeleteHappy sigh.
Colleen, I wish Iva had internet so she could read the nice responses. She would be so pleased.
ReplyDelete