Your Poetry Dot Com - By Needle And Thread

I've never felt adequate with a needle and thread,
But I keep on trying 'cause by hope I'm fed,...
Not content to just leave the wondrous craft be,....
For such skills represent more than what you see.

There is quilting and clothes-making,...
There's crocheting and tatting,...
And weaving and knitting...
You can do while you're sitting.

Grandma kept mending piled by her chair...
To wait for the moments she could rest there.
The mountain of mending seldom diminished;
Though she diligently sewed, she was never quite finished.

Mam couldn't catch up with the wear and the tear,...
And other chores to be done were everywhere;
When Grandma would come, she would often say,...
"Where's me some mending to do today?"

Families are cared for in so many ways,...
Each care-taker has skills we all could praise;...
But oh, so blessed, is the curly head,
Whose Grandma makes comforts to warm his bed.

Daddy's mother embroidered colors, bright and bold;...
Mama's mama made her own pattterns, I'm told,...
For dresses, shirts, pants, and all sorts of things,...
Crodheted rag rugs, and lace doily frillings.

My mama's embroidery was soft and neat,...
But her washing and ironing and a 'stitch-in- time'...
Were more important for grooming than a dress so fine.

An appreciation of art done by needle and thread
Has graced my heart and filled my head;...
Dear Babies and Grandbabies, when my stitching is through,...
I hope they'll remind you how much I've loved you.

G.F.R. Coykendall, October 31, 1990

This poem is Copyright © Bizzy