The Alteration
by Nancy Gustafson
She sits on the floor with pins and thread
to lower a hem and save a Sunday dress.
Her daughter stands upon a chair, dreams
of her future, romance, adventure.
This girl who grew beneath her mother's breast
now grows in glorious color toward the sun
while she who sits on the floor becomes
more gentle, softer, rounder, womanly.
Light from a grandmother’s star, burned long ago
and traveling time, refracts the crystal
of this mother’s sacrifice, showers
her children with gifts in vibrant colors.
One day her daughter will settle on the floor,
pull threads, pin a hem to save a Sunday dress
and glimpse the spectrum of her mother's
legacy shimmering, dancing with her own.
|
|
Nancy Gustafson has published poetry, short fiction and articles in anthologies and journals, including “A Cup of Comfort for Weddings,” “Tree Magic: Nature's Antennas,” “Gardening At A Deeper Level,” “Rocking Chair Reader: Coming Home,” “A Cup of Comfort for Inspiration,” “Suddenly IV” and “Suddenly V,” “Lucidity Poetry Journal,” “The Herbalist's Journal,” “The MAADvocate,” “Banshee Studios Magazine,” and several Poetry Society of Texas books of the year. She is retired from Sam Houston State University, where she worked as a program coordinator for the Correctional Management Institute of Texas at the George J. Beto Criminal Justice Center. She lives with her husband, Jan, in Huntsville, Texas.
|
