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    Parker Owens
  • Parker Owens
  • Author
  • 10/30/2018
  • 267 Words
  • 1,670 Views
  • 12 Comments
Poetry posted in this category are works of fiction. Names, places, characters, events, and incidents are created by the authors' imaginations or are used fictitiously. Any resemblances to actual persons (living or dead), organizations, companies, events, or locales are entirely coincidental.
Note: While authors are asked to place warnings on their stories for some moderated content, everyone has different thresholds, and it is your responsibility as a reader to avoid stories or stop reading if something bothers you. 

Disasters, Delights and Other Detours - 33. Four Aging Rockers

This is a new form to me - Ottava Rima - eight lines, all in the same meter, with a rhyming couplet at the end. These describe four pieces of furniture I brought home from my mother's house this summer. I am indebted to @AC Benus for his invaluable help in making these more presentable. Even so, I admit all my own errors.

1. The Child’s Rocker

 

Three brown-eyed brothers shared with me their books:

Babar, Just so Stories, Winnie-the-Pooh,

tucked into one of several cozy nooks;

but each of them, in time, my size outgrew,

while passing years abused my modest looks

and so it seemed my usefulness was through.

From dusty attic rescued recently,

I’m waiting for a boy to read to me.

 

 

2. The Black Painted Rocker

 

I’m used to babies crying in the night,

for many have I rocked to sleep and nursed

to settle back to slumberland’s delight

with lullabies and music unrehearsed;

and soothe in comfort, sadness or in fright

with stoic rhythms fit for each outburst.

Look not upon my battered paint with scorn,

for gentle love’s the reason I am worn.

 

 

3. The Needlepoint Seat Rocker

 

Nigh ninety bleak Novembers did I view

before old fingers stitched upon my seat;

with painful care a spray of flowers grew

and blossomed bright, the fading light to cheat.

But cold came to those hands ere snowflakes flew,

so other hearts my garden did complete.

Their seedlings, now full-grown, rest in my arms,

a refuge from the snowy winter’s charms.

 

 

4. The Lady’s Rocker

 

My old red cushioned seat has seen some wear

since I was once great-grandmother’s retreat

from such a world as commonplace made rare:

no longer horses labored in the street,

the ragman’s cry unheard upon the air,

and cozy fires replaced by central heat.

Yet since such days as progress might repress

were wonders wrought great-grandma could not guess.

Comments, notions or reactions are welcome. Or you can just draw up a chair and sit for a while.
Copyright © 2017 Parker Owens; All Rights Reserved.
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Poetry posted in this category are works of fiction. Names, places, characters, events, and incidents are created by the authors' imaginations or are used fictitiously. Any resemblances to actual persons (living or dead), organizations, companies, events, or locales are entirely coincidental.
Note: While authors are asked to place warnings on their stories for some moderated content, everyone has different thresholds, and it is your responsibility as a reader to avoid stories or stop reading if something bothers you. 
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Chapter Comments

Headstall

It's amazing how much an object or piece of furniture can mean to us. I related to all of these, Parker. My inherited rocker resides with my sister, and while I sometimes regret my decision, it is cherished, and was the right thing to do. My kids have learned the lesson I have taught... real furniture is made of real wood, and should last and be enjoyed for many lifetimes. Thank you for stirring my reflective mood this evening... cheers... Gary....

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Mikiesboy

Lovely...all of them. Furniture and houses can bring forth such history and memories. I'm glad you have all these to cherish. xo    The form calls to me...perhaps something to try.  Thank you Parker. 

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Parker Owens
7 minutes ago, Mikiesboy said:

Lovely...all of them. Furniture and houses can bring forth such history and memories. I'm glad you have all these to cherish. xo    The form calls to me...perhaps something to try.  Thank you Parker. 

 

I’m very glad this form calls out to you, too. There are stories in each of these rocking chairs, more than I’ll ever know. But for now, I will enjoy them, poetry sketchbook in my lap. Thank you very much for reading these. 

Edited by Parker Owens
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Parker Owens
20 minutes ago, Headstall said:

It's amazing how much an object or piece of furniture can mean to us. I related to all of these, Parker. My inherited rocker resides with my sister, and while I sometimes regret my decision, it is cherished, and was the right thing to do. My kids have learned the lesson I have taught... real furniture is made of real wood, and should last and be enjoyed for many lifetimes. Thank you for stirring my reflective mood this evening... cheers... Gary....

 

Yes, real furniture is made to last; as long as the stories that it can tell, as beautiful as the light and laughter and love it absorbs over the years. Perhaps your rocker with your sister surrounds her with memories of you. That’s no bad thing. I am glad you liked these, and may your reflections bring you contentment and smiles. 

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Starrynight22

"

Look not upon my battered paint with scorn,

 

for gentle love’s the reason I am worn."

 

I suddenly thought of the Velveteen Rabbit.  Out of the 4, the black painted rocker piece moved me most.  I felt the warmth and the use of the chair.  I can imagine the soft creak as the chair gently moves its occupant through hard times. 

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Valkyrie
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When I read the title, I first imagined a Rolling Stones concert, or the like :gikkle:  I loved them all, but number three brought a tear to my eye since it reminded me of my own grandma.  The nostalgia in these is very powerful and clear.  Well done, as always.  :hug: 

 

I'm reminded of a photograph taken of me and my brother when we were small children.  My grandparents had received a new rocking chair for Christmas--wooden with a wicker seat and back--and I had received a beautiful new dress from my uncle and Mickey Mouse roller skates from my grandparents.  My mom wanted a nice picture of me and my brother, all dressed up, on the new chair.  So we took the pic... complete with the roller skates I refused to remove.  :gikkle: 

Edited by Valkyrie
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dughlas

Such simple things rocking chairs and yet the memories held within their arms. I am gladdened that you have these four. The words they inspire are simply beautiful.

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Parker Owens
3 hours ago, Defiance19 said:

These resonate so deeply.. It is so great to have these memories. 

Thanks for sharing, Parker.. 

 Thank you for reading these, dear Def. These treasured pieces harbor a luster and memories beyond their beauty. I'm grateful these resonated with you.

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Parker Owens
3 hours ago, dughlas said:

Such simple things rocking chairs and yet the memories held within their arms. I am gladdened that you have these four. The words they inspire are simply beautiful.

 

You are very kind to read these four, and to comment on them so. Rocking chairs cannot help but soothe and comfort, though in different ways. These particular four have made connections at varied stations in life. Thank you very much for making time for these.

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Parker Owens
8 hours ago, Valkyrie said:

When I read the title, I first imagined a Rolling Stones concert, or the like :gikkle:  I loved them all, but number three brought a tear to my eye since it reminded me of my own grandma.  The nostalgia in these is very powerful and clear.  Well done, as always.  :hug: 

 

I'm reminded of a photograph taken of me and my brother when we were small children.  My grandparents had received a new rocking chair for Christmas--wooden with a wicker seat and back--and I had received a beautiful new dress from my uncle and Mickey Mouse roller skates from my grandparents.  My mom wanted a nice picture of me and my brother, all dressed up, on the new chair.  So we took the pic... complete with the roller skates I refused to remove.  :gikkle: 

 

The title was irresistible. Glad it brought a smile to you. If these four brought your own good  memories forward, then I am doubly happy in both our recollections. Number three was started by grandmother, then completed by a great aunt and then mother, neither of whom got to use the chair very much. But their work turned out quite beautifully, and one can be grateful for it. Thank you so much for reading these and for your comments.

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Parker Owens
11 hours ago, Starrynight22 said:

"

Look not upon my battered paint with scorn,

 

for gentle love’s the reason I am worn."

 

I suddenly thought of the Velveteen Rabbit.  Out of the 4, the black painted rocker piece moved me most.  I felt the warmth and the use of the chair.  I can imagine the soft creak as the chair gently moves its occupant through hard times. 

 

What a wonderful connection you made to the Velveteen Rabbit. That is one of my favorite tales. And while it did not make the poem, the Black Painted Rocker has 'rabbit ears' as part of its back. You are right that the old black rocker creaks very softly, very subtly, in motion. Thank you so much for reading these and for your wonderful comments.

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