Survivor’s Guilt
My knee wore down
with bone-to-bone pain
with no cushion to soften the friction
like my mother and sister
both had bad knees
invisible irritations
they quietly carried
How did my sister hook me a 5 x 12 foot rug
while suffering with carpal tunnel in her hands?
How did my elderly mother cook and clean
and kneel to pull weeds from her garden?
Now they’re both gone
and I’m standing in line
and asking
With all the losses we bear
and the trip-ups we endure
why aren’t more people limping?
Colleen Redman / Poets United / Imaginary Gardens with Real Toads
November 6th, 2016 9:08 am
I love that rug – it seems like a light.. a reason.. it is trite to say but it is strength not guilt which keeps us going
November 6th, 2016 9:10 am
good question, good poem
November 6th, 2016 10:58 am
I do sometimes wonder the same thing with so many losses….everywhere.
November 6th, 2016 11:16 am
Excellent work. Perfect line breaks and descriptions. I’ve enjoyed this more than once now.
My genes are a blessing and a curse; bad backs, but great skin. So we’re all more than a little scared about what may happen with my bones as time goes on. So far, so good, though.
This line makes me smile because it’s so fun to read aloud: “with no cushion to soften the friction” 🙂
November 6th, 2016 12:08 pm
Beautifully written.. much to think about. Why do we bear things the way we do..or fail to?
November 6th, 2016 12:55 pm
The pain people bear, and I guess you do it too… keeping it up seems to be a human streak.
November 6th, 2016 1:18 pm
i feel that bearing keeps the mind in rest & helps to survive…
November 6th, 2016 1:31 pm
This is so moving..!
November 6th, 2016 1:53 pm
You have tied the personal to the present to the pain so very well, Colleen.
November 6th, 2016 4:19 pm
As one who has been limping for 20 years, your question made me smile. And I felt that fall, in sympathy.
November 6th, 2016 5:23 pm
I am right there with bad joints and great skin–loved this Colleen!
November 6th, 2016 6:37 pm
My weaknesses is more spiritual and energy sapping. I sometimes wonder how people spend the day with so much chaos and anger. My joints still hold…for now. But for all of us our time comes and we get to lean on the memories of those who were strong before us.
November 6th, 2016 7:17 pm
This is spiritual as well. Here’s what I wrote on Facebook: This grief (compounded once more by it being for two) has been such a process and the physical pain sort of gave me a very real metaphor for it, as well as some delayed concrete empathy.
November 6th, 2016 7:59 pm
The human spirit keeps people going!
November 6th, 2016 9:36 pm
I literally winced when I read the first lines. Well crafted!
November 8th, 2016 10:30 am
Many of us are good at hiding the scars.
November 8th, 2016 12:13 pm
Poignant and heartbreaking, though what I notice is the sliver of light shining in midst of pain & loss. I suppose that is what makes the strength of a survivor, though guilt weighs heavily upon us….
November 8th, 2016 5:22 pm
I think most of us do limp through life… great metaphor
November 8th, 2016 8:39 pm
There is a certain strength in who we are, a strength that overcomes our weaknesses.
We may limp through life and cope as we do. This is our resilience.
Some of us cannot and we must offer our hands…
Kind regards
Anna :o]
November 9th, 2016 7:00 am
I like the mixture of reflection and description, and love the unexpected conclusion.
November 9th, 2016 10:01 pm
Some limps aren’t as obvious but we all know pain…
November 10th, 2016 11:48 pm
We all have our pain and somewhere we find the strength to walk and not limp (at least while others are watching.)
November 16th, 2016 5:08 pm
[…] 11. The poem, called Survivors Guilt, starts “My knee went out / bringing bone to bone pain / with no cushion to soften the friction / My mother and sister / both had bad knees / invisible irritations / they quietly carried …” and ends with “Why aren’t more people limping?” Read the whole poem HERE. […]