Kitchens And Crayons Poem by Liilia Talts Morrison

I remember afternoons
dusty screens and sunny reeds
lawns that needed watering
sandy lanes with sandspurs lined

I remember kitchen talk
slow and marked with silences
soup on a much battered stove
carrots simmering in broth

I remember flies on panes
oily walls with yellowed frames
where a child once marked her path
crayon scribbles hard to blot

I remember roses too
though they did not weather well
summer's heat and dearth of care
withered many plants and hopes

I remember long gone hours
spent in backyard wooden swings
as a faint breeze gently sent
fragrances of citrus blooms

Those were days that never can
be erased in my old mind
never leaving my poor heart
further dimming eyes with tears.