Hi Paul:
Greetings from Manhattan. Over fifty years ago, my grandmother said a few things to me shortly before she died that I knew would eventually find their way into a poem. Here is “Grandmother’s Note” from my 2008 collection, Father of Water.
Best wishes,
Charles Pierre
Paris. By Paul Goldfinger © Click to enlarge.
Grandmother’s Note
By Charles Pierre
Looking for less with each added year,
I’ve begun to live in the small space
that surrounds me now, in the shadows
that gather at my feet and follow
as I walk along, and in the breezes
that take my shape for an instant,
leaving nothing but gentle creases
in my hair and a cool ripple
over my skin. Expecting little,
I go where my handwriting leads me –
become just a sound, a word, a phrase,
part of the impression on the page
for a moment, not an old woman
with the obvious lines of age, but
a clear thought in this surrounding space
CAL TJADER: “The Night We Called it a Day”
Charles Pierre. Photograph by Marcella Kerr. ©
I remember Charles’ grandma, a sweet elderly presence in his home when we were kids. A note from her would be a cherished memento, especially as it highlights her time as a fully functioning adult. Thanks for this and your other poems, Charl’. My very best, Jim
Caejos. The photograph is by Marcella Kerr of NYC.
Did you take the picture of the poet using an assumed name?