teary eyed still
smiling while
wringing her hands,
a half laugh
blushing
the quiver of her chin.
She would have been
shuffling in the house
slippers, her bird-boned
legs a dampered clapper
inside a bell of ruby velour
shushing the floor
and swaying her towards
Eddie Arnold
who croons from the bedside
table to fold
her in sleep.
She would have been
dusting powder
soft folds below her arms,
whispering powder
blue vein into crepe
chiffon before putting on
her lips. She would have been
calling me
Sugar.
Sugar, come over here.
Let me have a look at you.
Her hands
both
busy laying out the satin slip to wear
to her grave
and open
to me. Always opening,
she would have been
102, teary eyes still
like a mouth
turning up
for a kiss.
Shannon E. Williams 
Beautiful!
She was.
who’s photographer 😀
televisionshowepisode.com/2013/08/the-conjuring-2013.html
Humanised in delicate words and knowing phrase. Very well executed homage.
Your generous praise makes me want to keep writing so I can live up to it. Thank you.
Great! Poem
Beutiful poem!
Reblogged this on The Poet's Nest.
What a gift! Thank you for visiting. I’ll swing by and visit you there.
Okay. My pleasure.
love this
Thank you!
You just made me cry…thinking of my grandmother.
It’s hard not to tear up sometimes, eh? I caught a whiff of mine the other day opening a trunk full of her handkercheifs. 10 years since she left, and it’s like she walked right up to me and gave me a squeeze.
Hello
So beautiful…
http://theneonpapaya.com
Nice poem! Please remember her the way she was. May her memory be a blessing to you!
It is, she was. I so appreciate your thoughts.
The kiss is all! Your blog is gorgeous!
The kiss is always all, ain’t it?
Always! For sure!
so beautiful.
This was perfectly written. Thanks for sharing, you really got into the delicacies of this woman and shared it so effortlessly, or at least it looks that way.
What a kindness, your words. I hope my writing can improve enough to earn it. Calling her up is the effortless part. Capturing it? That’s where I rely on her to guide my hand.
awesome poetry
They say it’s a lost art, but boy, sometimes it’s the only way in.
Thank you for this. I was reminded of my mother.
I’m so glad this called up a memory. I hope it was a good one.
I absolutely love this. Beautiful.
Thank you! I enjoyed visiting your site and seeing what you are making, other than lemonade.
Beautiful tribute!
Beautifuly haunting
lovely!
Nice sentiment . Jalal
Very Beautiful !!
It’s awesome!!!!!
Nice!
Interesting read. You inspire me.
Oh, good! I hope the inspiration leads you somewhere unexpected.
such a vulnerability in your words, excellent composition!
Thank you for reading!
lovely poem 🙂
btw, who is she ?
Mary Frances. Paternal grandmother. Dancer. Writer. Neighbor. Hugger.
Beautifully written…
A great poem and post. Thank you.
This is wonderful. Congrats on being Freshly Pressed!
It’s so fun to have new visitors and to find new, interesting sites to go explore. Thanks!
So good poem!!!
Beautiful!
Nice line dear…
Poetry can be such a wonderful way to remember those we loved. Here’s one that I edited from unrelated, unpublished writings of Duncan Miller — the epilogue of “The Other Mother:”
I was a river murmuring in the noonday shade of the trees, coursing through soft green banks.
We love each other for the sum of what we are.
Implicit with movement, even in repose.
“We love each other for the sum of what we are.” Yes. Maybe also despite the sum at times?
Reblogged this on sweetmelissa1954 and commented:
so thoughtful!
Thanks so much for the reblog! So kind of you.
beautiful piece!
Wow this was amazing!
What a great gift to your family!
Thank you! She was the one who was the gift. This is just payback.
Lovely. Your memories must be so warm and comforting. Thank you for sharing.
Wow. Very moving and so full of love.
Hi! i like your poems!!!! i am following your writing…. waiting new writing. good bye.
Very beautiful!
You can’t help not smile back at her picture. Lovely Lady.
It’s hard to believe any of us was ever so young, eh?
beautifully woven thoughts!!!
Thanks so much for reading!
I realized not too long ago that I don’t have any grandmothers left. I can say that I was fortunate enough to have a great grandmother live until I was nineteen. She was born the year before the Titanic sank.
This reminded me of her.
I hope you remember her well. Thanks for sharing what this brought up for you.
So beautiful !!
very touching….
Such a Beautiful poem, it reminds me of my grandma. I always remember though that our loved ones always follow us after they are gone. They watch over us and protect us. I am glad you have someone with that much love in your life.
It’s true. Sometimes the people longest gone seem closer than someone sitting right next to me. I understand why so many of us believe in ghosts.
Lovely poem, thank you!
Beautifully written
Well, howdy, Beeseeker! It’s nice to see you here again. As ever, I appreciate your thoughts.
Wow…that left me teary-eyed. How beautiful!
Thank you for visiting and for the kind words.
Reblogged this on Mad World and commented:
This is simply beautiful! I absolutely love it!
Oh, thank you for the re-blog! It’s so nice to know you’re sharing this with others.
I really enjoyed it! Not a problem!
Beautiful ode to your grandmother and beautiful photograph. I have lately been writing about my great aunt and this inspires me to continue with that.
Your grandmother has a very genuine, optimistic smile. If your grandmother would have been 102 then my rough calculation would be this picture was taken in . . . 1931? Wow, the depths of the Depression and she could still smile like that. She must have been made of tough stuff. You’re an excellent poet by the way. I have a blog post on Baudelaire you might be interested in.
It’s funny. I have thought of her age then, as I often do. It didn’t occur to consider the historical context of the photo. I know she had no photos taken at the wedding when she married my grandfather because of war rationing. The only record of it is a brief announcement on yellowing newsprint from the local paper (though I suppose all of us are proof enough!) Thank you for coming by and sharing your thoughts.
Incredible
spectacular! Thank you for sharing your gift. C+P
I’ll just add my comment that this is beautiful! Hauntingly elegant imagery and yet simple at the same time.
Thank you for reading and for sharing your experience of this.
So glad that you shared her beauty w/us! Nothing like a mature Southern woman! Prayers for your peace as you grieve!
How moving
Aw, such a great poet you are!! I can only dream that one of my grandchildren will write that of me one day. But they aren’t likely to have any dreamy photos like that one of your grandmother. Beautiful lady — I can see she’ll be missed greatly. And I can see why this was Pressed. Congrats. 🙂
No reason you can’t take some of those dreamy photos now! Thank you for the kind words.
Beautifully and delicately written…love it. 🙂
Loved it 🙂 truely amazing poem.
Very moving…
This is amazing. Thank you so much for sharing this – it’ bittersweet to miss someone so dear.
So poignant. It is the way we all should feel. How we miss our grandmothers!
Lovely. I knew it would be from the photo and the title.
Good information. Lucky me I discovered your website by chance (stumbleupon).
I have bookmarked it for later!