Iron Works by Aliene Pylant
This is another selection from the Texas Poetry Calendar 2008. You may read a bit more about Aliene Pylant here.
Iron Works
By Aliene Pylant
My mother’s father was a Llano blacksmith,
a steel percussionist whose hammer slapped
a beat which threatened to explode his shop
the day another daughter came along—the fifth.
No sons! His wounded German pride grew chapped
to think a legacy of metalwork would stop.
His artistry with iron was almost myth—
a man of steel who forged the brands and tapped
the shoes on skittish horses other blacksmiths dropped.
My mother’s mother, who forgave his tizzy,
sang Brahms while laundering small dresses
with sashes, bows, and ruffled pinafores.
Five daughters kept her Monday washdays busy,
scrubbing, bleaching, bluing all the messes.
Then Tuesday’s ironing by the stove indoors,
with heated implements that made her dizzy—
crimping, pleating, fluting to perfection. Her finesse
with iron considered just another household chore.
Current Tea: Bavarian chocolate creme (black tea with flavoring of creamy German chocolate)
