The Painter
Your chickadee and thistle
are too big for the frame
but they need the protection of glass
I shave off the edges
of lavender and green
and think of your life cut short
I trim the blue water
where your sea turtle floats
and remember your hair in matted knots
and you in the bed
like your underwater whale
pointing its head toward the light
I want your brilliant colors
on the walls of my home
because knowing you
has made me more bold
I want to see your setting sun
on the Puerto Rican horizon
rise in my kitchen
and hear the curl of your wave
on the Antigua shore
roar as it washes away
~ Colleen Redman
Laurelsong Staengl Cook was a member of our Floyd community who passed away this winter. You can read more about her and view more of her artwork HERE. Dverse poets sharing HERE.
March 20th, 2012 8:41 am
What a lovely tribute. It seems that art work always keeps the memory of someone special alive, doesn’t it.
March 20th, 2012 8:50 am
Just yesterday I put this print and the turtle in frames and had to cut them to fit and in that action the poem came to me. I couldn’t read it without crying every time. Yes, her art work is having an effect on me and I’m surprised at how it and she has changed me. Artwork and dying (especially prematurely) can really get our attention.
March 20th, 2012 5:17 pm
This poem, oh oh oh, my heart breaks for the loss expressed. But glad you have some of your friend’s artwork, and for the beauty that will live on, on your walls and in your heart for her. I bet she is painting in heaven, waiting for you all to see her new creations one day.
And she must not have brushed her hair much, (the matts) she was so engrossed in her art? That’s a good sign I think!
xoxo
March 20th, 2012 5:33 pm
Maybe I need to change a line to be clearer about the matted hair. It was from laying in bed so long when she was sick. It’s only implied here.
March 20th, 2012 5:58 pm
What a lovely painting and tribute to the artist…
I specially like:
I want your brilliant colors
on the walls of my home
because knowing you
has made me more bold
March 20th, 2012 7:07 pm
Always great how so much memory and fondness can be found in art, nice write!
March 20th, 2012 7:09 pm
this is rich with the feeling of loss but also warm rememberance of what they meant and brought life and light to yours…
March 20th, 2012 9:00 pm
As an artist I often wonder what happens to my children (paintings) once they are out in the world. How wonderful to think that the objects hold emotion, that her strength can still aid you in finding yours, and you were inspired into a poetic dialogue. Thank you, this is lovely.
March 20th, 2012 9:31 pm
I am so sorry for your loss. A beautiful tribute to your friend.
March 20th, 2012 11:50 pm
Wonderfully told and so lovingly remembered. I am guessing that this is a poem about a picture that a loved one painted. To be surrounded by those things that were crafted by imagination and hand of someone we loved is such a celebration of life, a memorial to the now that their spirit still now inhabits.
March 21st, 2012 2:24 am
That is BEAUTIFUL Colleen…Love the Painting AND LOVE the Poem. What a lovely tribute to this very special woman.
March 21st, 2012 8:19 am
Love the poem. LOVE the picture……xoxo
March 21st, 2012 8:44 am
your poetry is like a bright ray of light for me today. love both the picture and your beautiful verse with a melancholic tinge. your friend’s soul is felt deeply through her wonderful art..thanks for sharing.
March 21st, 2012 8:50 am
Beautiful!
March 21st, 2012 1:53 pm
I want to see your setting sun
on the Puerto Rican horizon
rise in my kitchen….loved all of it…esp. these lines though as they’re just bursting with warmth…what a beautiful and heartfelt tribute..
March 22nd, 2012 8:40 pm
There is such a tenderness about this piece for me–your love shines in every line–Just beautiful writing!