Over Yonder ya can see it,
a cat purred at his feet,
It took some effort gettin' out.
His hands browned over the years.
And this one's Junior.
Traditional snot ran down his lip.
You can't make um like this no mo'.
The tonka shirt was a month too small.
Ah, June is due again in Feb'eary.
The pile of wood I came for is loaded.
They sa' it's a gonna be colder this winter.
I know, hence the wood.
The child was set back down
to play tag with an uninterested orange tabby cat,
while the once proud White Oak waits
to become humble heat for my winter home.
Author notes
This has happened to me, but I don't have a home. I just went to get wood for our camp in August, and the man that sold it talked our ear off and introduced every one of his animals (goats, cats, turkeys, pigs, you name it). They are wonderful people out in the country (I use to be from a sort of country area), but there is an incredible lifestyle difference between the city and the country. It seems like things are slower and things in the city have sped me up so much I sometimes get really irritated with the kind of intimacy and drawl that comes from the country. But, there is beauty in the life there, and I should never forget that. This poem I am proud to begin work on ethnic imagery. Using the two different voices I started working on previously to show a difference in class and culture. I hope that has come through. God bless, keep writing.
Aaron
A contest entry
- October's Stun by CarolDesjarlais.
525 points, ended October 29, 2007, 12 entries
• next poem in this contest, remove from contest
Tell me what you think
Comments
-
It did indeed come through. I have an ear for different dialcts and ways of saying things. I worked in fly-in isolated communties, and with many tribes, and there is something so dear about the way they speak, the terms they use. I think two words used that will always stick with me is that whoo hoo is owl in Cree ( as is Iguana- it means say it again) and Brrrr, is meat in Denesuline. I was their joke. well done exercise in making this come real with real characters I can relate to.
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