Sunday, January 16, 2011

A farmhouse once


A farmhouse once
surrounded by burgeoning fields
of wheat and sunflowers
pregnant with seed, voices
laughing, weeping, loving, dying

Now a vertical corrugation
of undulating metal sheets
unbolting from a collapsing porch
the color of time weathered,
eroded by the west wind

It throws forward to accept,
to embrace for a moment
fleeting in shadowed sun,
its place in a soon-forgotten
embrace with landscape.


To see other poems prompted by the photography, please visit One Shot Sunday at One Stop Poetry.

Photograph by Katherine Forbes; used with permission for One Shot Poetry.

16 comments:

Carmela-J said...

Love your take on the prompt, and feel the sadness for this forgotten place. Beautifully described.

Brian Miller said...

growing up in the sticks you captured a moment an environment a landscape that is disappearing that is romantic in its own way and nostalgic...nice. glad you pulled that out of the prompt...

dustus said...

Such a great depiction of a seemingly ordinary place taking on special meaning through the life that occurred there. "the color of time weathered, / eroded by the west wind" especially great sound to those lines! Poignant message too—relish our moment and where it passes. Excellent challenge response, Glynn!

Anonymous said...

Growing up on a farm where life revolves in seasons. Felt the excellence in your words, life goes on.

Claudia said...

most of all i loved..pregnant with seed.. this paints the whole picture without much more words needed..nicely done glynn

Jerry said...

Soon forgotten embrace with landscape...tight. You bring so much history here. Nice.

Gigi Ann said...

What a nice poem, I lived on a farm for 40 years, and there was laughing, weeping, loving and dying. But, I wouldn't trade that life for all the city living, to much fun out behind the barn.

Fireblossom said...

I can see it. Heck, I can smell the grass. Love this.

Anonymous said...

here are more good images for your wonderful poem...

http://margaretbednar365.blogspot.com/2011/01/106356.html

Margaret said...

Wow! Talk about "synchronizing". I think I just took some photos that could go along with this poem as well! Lovely, poem. I think I will link my photos to your poem here, if you don't mind.

Margaret said...

Let's see if this works for a direct link

Margaret said...

No, I don't think so. Sorry. I see Nance Marie posted my photography blog above. Check it out if you like.

Maureen said...

I get the sense that someone from that couple is looking back. It makes me wonder what happened to all those seeds of possibilities. Nice take on the prompt!

I like the images of Margaret Bednar's barns. Thanks, Nance Marie.

hedgewitch said...

Very intelligent build of comparison here, and great image as well.

S. Etole said...

that shadow pretty much says it all ...

Anonymous said...

Very nice. I really enjoyed reading it. I like the idea of transience embodied in the descriptions of the past of the building and the present moment. Thank you for sharing.