Laundry Line (Americana Poetry)
My grandparents lived in a “ticky tacky” house in San Francisco when I was a kid. I remember the long cord that went out from the house to the telephone pole. I used to love pulling the cord and making the laundry fly free. I was always surprised that anything would dry in the cold moist S.F. fog.
I pushed you out each morning
pulled you at the end of light
you faithfully held my clothes
thru morning, noon, and night
***
I let you stand alone at times
you’ve been my faithful friend
my husband’s jeans
the baby’s frock
were fresh because you’d spin
***
But I was sold a bill of goods
a large white metal box
it took up space
saved some time
and noise -there was lots
***
It would change the world
of this I’m certain now
energy has gone sky-high
we weren’t thinking
the day we took you down
*******************
Thanks to my friend Emily
you can see other fine photography at
very nice Leslie,and the graphic was superb xxx
August 25, 2010 at 3:47 pm
How times have changed!! Thanks for the memories dear Moon!! Well written!! xx
August 25, 2010 at 5:14 pm
we had a clothesline when i was growing up…it was magical to run through the sheets not knowing what was on the other side…i miss it.
August 25, 2010 at 5:25 pm
Such a splendid write about something so simple. Love this!
August 25, 2010 at 6:59 pm
We always dried our clothes out on the line to save energy costs when I was a kid. Now that I’m married, we take the easy way out and dry ‘em in a clothes dryer.
Now, washing them… that’s a different beast altogether. We go down to the river, rinse ‘em and beat ‘em on a rock.
Well, no, not really, but it makes us sound like model eco friendly citizens of earth, doesn’t it?
August 26, 2010 at 5:31 am
I’m thinking those rocks wore clothing out quickly. I personally dry all my clothes in the laundry room. My clothes last much longer and dont fade
August 26, 2010 at 4:02 pm
Aaah.. loved the end.. poignant…
Time (or lack of it), I suppose..
The gadgets we use these days makes you think back on the old-time easy-and-natural stuff!!! (sigh)
I suppose there is always a bunch of pros and cons to everything… I wonder what makes us strike this “odd” balance!
August 26, 2010 at 4:18 pm
i think you are right – time has such value
August 26, 2010 at 6:26 pm
I remember clothes lines in my grandmother’s yard….isn’t it funny that now they try and sell us products that promise to capture that outdoor smell…very refreshing poem.
August 26, 2010 at 4:42 pm
They were a novelty to us – we should have kept them. What you save in time you pay in other ways
August 26, 2010 at 6:26 pm