My Grandmother H -- for Tuesday dVerse Poetics and Friday Writings
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My Grandma H
It's a Monday wash day,
it's off to Grandma's house we go,
Mom and I
I'm riding on the package shelf
of our 1929 Model A Ford
We are off to do our washing, Mom and I
we used Grandma's washer
because we didn't have one yet
Grandma was my best friend,
and closest,
we lived on a farm down and across the road
I'd tell her my doings,
she listed with an eager ear to my yarn
Grandma had been a school teacher,
she learned to listen good
She,
I knew I was her favorite
wanted to know the things I'd done
The day I told her,
she knew already and had asked,
about the car
My Dad was buying a 1934 Chevrolet,
one with a back seat for kids
It was a secret, Grandma's surprise to hear.
But she already knew
and asked me,
"Your going to get a knew car, aren't you?"
I didn't know it was a secret
and so told her what I knew
Every year,
we'd go to Grandma's house
on Thanksgiving Day and for Christmas
her favorite cooking for me
was her scalloped oysters,
with browned and soaked soda crackers
on the wall of the crock
She was a good cook,
I thought the best
Like my mom,
Grandma had been a town girl
but married a fellow from the farm
Country mothers took care
of the chickens and eggs
and cooked and cleaned
and took care of the kids, she had five
Things they from their mothers
hadn't learned real well till things came up
On their 50th wedding anniversary
they had "Open house"
My folks talked about it some,
my favorite talk to tell was about the bar
Grandpa wanted a bar for his friend,
Grandma said, no liquor in my house
I feel Grandma didn't know until it was done,
Grandpa had made a bar in the barn
Grandma died while I was gone,
New Hampshire,
she lived in Nebraska
I lived in New Hampshire then,
I chose not to go to the funeral
She died at age 96 in 1968
I visited her grave later, every time
when I would come home
to visit relatives
I have written of grandparents before,
here is a link to those postings, URL
_ _ _
- Photo and Poem Copyright, Jimmiehov 2023, All Rights Reserved
- Photo from our family picture stash
- I am linked with Magaly who is posting the Friday Writings at
- It is exactly prose word count max, 369 for Friday Writings. I'm not sure prose poems have that restriction
- I am also linked with dVerse Poetics hosted for prompting by Sarah at
she wants us to write of our grandmothers, I had two, Grandma H was my closest both relationship and distance.
- This was another write I almost made sitting on the edge of my bed in the middle of the night. Instead, I stayed up and didn't go back to bed, 5:58 AM on my day to sleep in.
- You can read other's dVerse responses to the prompt here, at
- You might be inspired to write with us
..
Labels: A Tribute, dVerse prompt, Family, Friday Writings, Jim's Life, Poem, Prose, prose poem, True
posted by Jim @ 1/27/2023 12:12:00 AM
14 comments
14 Comments:
This is great - feel like we're sitting by the fire having a good old chat. Your grandma obviously enjoyed your company!
You took me back to those times. Sad about the beating, times were tougher back then, sometimes harsh. My grandma was a farm girl and married the bank manager. She said all the town girls were mad he picked a farm girl.
That beating is the one thing that tells me this was a long time ago Jim.
Best friends always listen...glad it was your grandmother!
Sorry to hear about the beating Jim. But luv your grandmother poem
Much❤love
Grandma, your best friend-- I love that. Oh how she loved you and made you tell her what she already knew (suspected)-- grandmas have their ways of knowing things. Sorry about the beating later. Thanks for sharing. Blessing you.
Precious memories in this tribute!
(At P&SU we decided to make everything 369 words max, to simplify matters – not only the prose pieces – and quietly dropped the distinction when posting our instructions.)
Grandmothers can be such special friends to their grandchildren, from the earliest age! I love how you brought yours to life for us.
Poetry is a great way to tell an oral history story. You captured so much.
My grandma was my best friend too, so this really calls to me. I remember the days of doing things together--the washing, the gardening, the harvesting--those were the best days of my life.
Very interestingly narrated Dr Jim! It's an advantage when one is close to them that the personal touch is invoked.
Hank
That's so nice! My mother grew up, and kept up, the washing on Monday too! She'd change sheets on Sunday, wash Monday, iron on Tuesday. Even the old kitchen towels I'd dry dishes with in the 60's were embroidered with those same tasks and days!
How wonderful to have a grandmother as a best friend.
You are blessed to have a granny like that! Your conversational tone took me there.
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