About Town

Pechin Street Roses & Wrought Iron
a '74 on its way to camping trip in Virginia
the parish residence on Monastary Ave
More roses on the corner
Imprisoned VW, Green Lane

Escape

We set ourselves packing
In the evenings tidal asphalt, fueled by soft serve & will
We capsized the 'miss north light ' on the rocks
& caught a tricycle ride
Over the bumpy bricks
Catching the scent of evening tea roses in the fading humid night

A Time to Keep

I recently had the good fortune of stumbling upon a Tasha Tudor picture book that I hadn't yet discovered.
"A Time to Keep" tells of the special goings on in the calendar year by illustrating its celebrations. It's pure loveliness.


Since this May has been mostly gloomy & I am otherwise engaged in activities not so fun, I am enjoying her drawings.


Dreaming of future Mays, where we will have a Maypole.


& plant our garden


& seek refuge from the sun under the cherry blossoms.
Oh, what dreams.

Bus love

It's the giant steering wheel that truly makes a bus
Using your arms to make that turn
Feels like your riding an amusement car
Kids bouncing in their car seats
The meep meep of the horn

Wild Animals on the loose in Mount Airy

While driving home this afternoon,
Through the wilds of Mount Airy,
I came across a psychedelic elephant
In mid salut,
He seemed to be
In the right place, at the right moment,
Listening to Parliament's Flashlight
In the misty Friday rain.

Quilts

floursack quilt
Found at Church Rummage Sale
On Green Lane in Manayunk








The Eastman Road Quilt

She said she had something to give me
& we climbed the stairs, past the
Shining paneled walls of the upstairs hall & she led me to the small door of the eaves.
In there, she said
In that box.
Go on, take it.

I protested. I don't want to take anything away from your family.

No, she said,
No one in my family made it.
The lady down the road did.

I thanked her again, and took in the pink vision.

Her own bed downstairs was covered by a butterfly quilt. She had said her mother had made it.

Gladys was 87.
When I helped her to bed for her afternoon nap, I would cover her with those colorful butterflies & smile.

I drove home that day, off the farm, off the cape, wondering which house, which lady made the quilt.

When I got home I laid it out. Admiring it's subtleties. It's pink variations, the red squares in the center. The green yarn.
The calico back.

I packed it away today, thinking
Of the big oak in Gladys side yard.
The eave where it was stored for all those years.
& I think of Gladys
Her garden & hydrangeas, fixing her food, eating in the pale purple dining room with the wood stove and her stories
& am so grateful of
Her generosity.

roots

I am always amazed at the depths of the city
How deep one can go
Careening on the highway, wedged between truck & walls
& then suddenly,
on the edge of the darkest
Of woods, watching deer mingle in the dusk
Amongst thick brush
& trees with the deepest of roots
No matter what wind may comes,
To shake their timbers
& scatter the deer into the night.

New Ride

Last week, we put to rest
The sweet fabric which cradled our babes next to us.
Whilst walking Ophelia around the block she put her foot through a bit of wear in the fabric and pushed, next thing I knew out popped a foot.
Although sad to see it go, I was excited to make a new one. & with joy rummaged through the fabric stash for something strong, breathable & soft. Luckily I found just the right thing! Scored at a house sale two years back, this lovely lite blue linen with leaf decoration.
It took me all of 20 minutes to make, after studying the old slings mechanics & stitchery.
Viola, new sling. I even think little miss likes it. She has been enjoying the hip carry lately.



As for the old sling maybe the salvageable pieces will go into a little of this or that. We shall see.

Fairview

As a small girl, living next to this park, I never knew it's name.
It was home to a few empty bottles,
splintered wooden benches & a vagrant sleeping off a bender.
My friend & I would be play spys, hiding behind the tall yews, watching an old man snore.

The large sentinel oaks are gone now. Their roots covered by asphalt
& the tables & benches were removed by the city
to prevent people from lingering,
or so I am told.

What is a park if you cannot linger?

Tonight we happened upon this space on our evening walk,
& to our surprise
It was filled with dogs & kids
People standing about
talking with one another.

I was greeted
& my children asked to play.

& it felt so odd,
after all these years

this vagabond little park,
has at long last found it's community.

Neighborhood Castle

In these parts,
Castles are for fairy tales.
But once in a while,
Behind an ancient evergreen
A stone bastion will rise
Aged Gray in the late afternoon jsun
It's corners rounded
It's walls lined with fingerprints.

Footfalls sounding on the flagstone path.
Measuring time by the chipped slate roof,
Sunken porch boards,f
Leaking eaves.

In the top most tower window
A doll sits,
Appraising her inherited lands; the front lawn, the street, the fallen fence

11 things

This past week I've enjoyed being sprung...& in no particular order....



1. Open windows with green leafiness abound...



2. The neighborhood pig, Joey




3. Lady O in her stroller watching the neighborhood pig.



4. Iron fences and scattered magnolia petal paths...



5. Flying the pocket kite everywhere we went...



6. Air conditioning, because some of those times, it was quite hot!



7. Sweet sons who pick flowers for this here lucky mama....



8. Pretty photo on the wall...



9. Nate kicking off the carnival season with a motorcycle ride.



10. Watching the crowd at the Philadelphia International Festival for the Arts, from the steps of the Academy on Broad Street.



11. One lovely baby with her Pa enjoying the horses at the 90th annual Wissahickon Day Parade.

A lovely week indeed....