To Sarah, Afraid

To Sarah, Afraid

A daily effort at domestic bliss,
economizing family, food, and kin.
She saw too sharply idealistic dreams
consumed in welfare programs and regrets,
too hard to live alone and too complex.
Her children wanted things she could not get.
Her trade union lay in her husband's hands.
It was a priviledge that he bragged about.
Her hands were tied with duties and self doubt.
One would think a happy ending lay
inside the private empire of her life,
but no such luck, she had a fear of men,
and agencies and bills that rumbled in.
Her mind had regulated her desires
into a vacant room of spider webs.
There was no tree more frozen by the ice,
than Sarah when she fingertipped her life,
than Sarah when she ate her humble pie
in silent lowered looks that hid her eyes.

Reviews

[Emily B]

oh, Phibby, what life does to women sometimes, and you draw it so pain-stakingly

you are a wonder

[Marie Anzalone]

I love the way you don't flinch from your subjects, Phibby. You look them straight in the eye and heart and see them as human beings, as individuals. you write, in essence, about the people Van Gogh would have painted, were he alive today. In this poem, you are describing the cycle of hell that most of my family was trapped in. You are writing about my neighbors, my aunts, my cousins, my best friend, my grandmother, my mom; and, for a stretch of time, almost myself. Alas had we but a way to awaken these women, but they must do that themselves. Some few do... many never know they have that chance.

[Terry Collett]

A subject close to me and one I have touched on in my own work. You have done the subject well and conveyed the inner aspects of Sarah as well as the outer. Much goes on behind closed doors which we know little about still. Thank you for sharing your fine talent..

[David Lewis Paget]

The power of men over women! Not so complete these days as it used to be, but I'm sure it still exists in places where the woman is too timid to strike out on her own. One would hope that the husband would show compassion and support to the woman who had borne his children, but sadly, sometimes not. A good piece.

[Tracie Skarbo]

Poor Sarah and her humble pie...you paint a picture of too many women out there struggling underneath a domineering man and trapped by fears. I was once such a woman ... but luckily I learnt that was not a life to live and strength and will blossomed so I could finally take flight. Although I didn't have kids to contend with...Excellent job!

[Jibey]

A tender and touching pen-portrait of this sad woman.... Conveys so well the lack of self-esteem and the struggle of such a person...

[Narnie]

I love the 'fingertipped her life'. As I have read in yours, you create beautiful exact imagery with your careful use of descriptives. This will really engage a reader as a life encapsulated in so few words.

[Ken Simm.]

This has the ultimate feel of truth. Very close truth spoken in an almost narrative way. Excellent.

[W.k.kortas]

To be this incisive is one thing. To be able to capture it in words is another. To capture it in these words, well...

[Collect-Eye]

I've been through an unimaginable amount of experience as a direct result of being poor and psychologically abused..but I refuse to stop dreaming and living and learning..I'm a screw up for the most part, but I am unimaginably grateful for every experience I've had. I'm patient w/ those who are afraid to dream..I try to get them on my side, because I'm afraid too.
I love the phrase "private empire of her life"
You have an exquisite way of juxtaposing such phrases w/ natural prose..good story telling. Awesome Phibby