Post by David Nelson Bradsher on Apr 2, 2008 8:04:25 GMT -5
Juanita
There was a pastoral simplicity
to Person County, close to Hurdle’s Mill,
a salt-of-earth regard for family,
and a specific patch of land to till.
You made your start there, on a rustic farm,
Beside the widely-rowed tobacco fields,
A place of timelessness; unvarnished charm;
And the concerns of droughts and meager yields.
Your modest youth was rich; it taught you how
To brook the chasm of the Great Depression
Without the favor money can endow,
But with a much more valuable possession:
The knowledge that a fiercely earnest soul
And a good name is something you respect
(Like how you baked the perfect dinner roll),
And having friends is something you protect.
You left to marry, but the country life
Provided the components of your heart,
The kind of heart a mother and a wife
could form a masterpiece of every part.
The end has come. Well done, Juanita. Rest,
And let your qualities enrich the earth
As we intone, “Praise God, the land is blessed!”
Because the world is better for your birth. *
*my Dad's sister is in her final hours and my cousin asked me to write a poem for the program and the funeral. It tends more towards cliche than I prefer, but with weddings and funerals you write for the intended audience, so I'm putting my disclaimer on that side of things. (The dinner roll line is a homage to her baking abilities, and most of the attendees will have experienced that). Thanks. Just wanted to explain.
There was a pastoral simplicity
to Person County, close to Hurdle’s Mill,
a salt-of-earth regard for family,
and a specific patch of land to till.
You made your start there, on a rustic farm,
Beside the widely-rowed tobacco fields,
A place of timelessness; unvarnished charm;
And the concerns of droughts and meager yields.
Your modest youth was rich; it taught you how
To brook the chasm of the Great Depression
Without the favor money can endow,
But with a much more valuable possession:
The knowledge that a fiercely earnest soul
And a good name is something you respect
(Like how you baked the perfect dinner roll),
And having friends is something you protect.
You left to marry, but the country life
Provided the components of your heart,
The kind of heart a mother and a wife
could form a masterpiece of every part.
The end has come. Well done, Juanita. Rest,
And let your qualities enrich the earth
As we intone, “Praise God, the land is blessed!”
Because the world is better for your birth. *
*my Dad's sister is in her final hours and my cousin asked me to write a poem for the program and the funeral. It tends more towards cliche than I prefer, but with weddings and funerals you write for the intended audience, so I'm putting my disclaimer on that side of things. (The dinner roll line is a homage to her baking abilities, and most of the attendees will have experienced that). Thanks. Just wanted to explain.
