in the old days

in the old days

 

mama cried 

on her Pendleton sleeve

plaid tears

the kind that explode

like bubbles

when pricked by fear

 

the jacket

encompassed an anxious soul

a hitherto frozen heart

 

her children cried too

but her jacket 

was buttoned up so tightly

 

she could not feel a drop.

 

 

erin-cilberto

3/24/25

Reviews

[Wicahpi]

A good Pendleton can carry the weight off all our tears.

Nice write. Thank you

[jacob erin-cilberto]

Thank you for your words, Wicahpi.
j.

[Thomas W Case]

Tremendous work. Powerful and well crafted.

[jacob erin-cilberto]

Thank you, Thomas.
j.

[Julie McCarthy (juliesp..]

This is described beautifully
It leaves the reader well myself anyway with a sense of being lucky that I had a mother that comforted me if I cried
Loved it

[jacob erin-cilberto]

I am so glad you did, Julie...that is most important.
j.

[Desert Knave]

Many of us grew up around those who insulated themselves from tears. Very interesting write. ~Jim

[jacob erin-cilberto]

Thank you, Jim.
j.

[Fabian G. Franklin]

Our life experiences so vary that each are unique as we are individual. Individuality is the only true freedom and the individual is the only defense against prejudice and bigotry. My "old days" are not yours, nor yours, mine. But they existed in some of the same times. That said, it's wonderful to glimpse at the lives of others to give ourselves a broader perspective on what it is and what it means to be "human". It can be a terrifying or richly rewarding concept not mutually exclusive, one of the other. But we walk between the spaces of alternate eternities looking through the windows of other's bakeries, maybe wishing for a sweet roll while trying the taste of sour grapes. You write so wonderfully but often poignant and elusive longing fills the spaces in between the lines. Superbly crafted, as usual. F.

[jacob erin-cilberto]

Thank you for your very kind review, Fabian.
j.

[williams]

i think portraying our emotions sometimes can be catastrophic so we tend to hide them

[jacob erin-cilberto]

Yes, we do tend to do that.
Thank you, williams.
j.

[Chris Shaw]

So sad that your mama’s heart was frozen by her childhood trauma. I felt this poem deeply j. Children need to feel much warmth. My own mum did not show her emotions openly. She was brought up in the environment of the stiff upper lip. As adults we can reflect and understand what we didn’t as children.

Chris

[jacob erin-cilberto]

Sure is the truth, Chris...thank you for your kind review,
j.

[Betty Hermelee]

I think in the old days perhaps women were not allowed to show emotion…. Just like they were not allowed to express themselves in other ways…. Quite sad
Warmly, B🌷🌷

[jacob erin-cilberto]

Especially certain ones who dealt with coldness from their own parents and step=parents.
thank you, Betty.
j.

[John the Baptist]

We must wonder what made Mama cry. She is described as an anxious soul, and possibly repressed, so that she could not express her deepest feelings, even to her family. Of course, we must consider the time she lived. Free expression of emotion was not always encouraged in the past.

[jacob erin-cilberto]

Yes, tough upbringings can shut people down.
thanks, John,
j.

[Soren]

Sometimes the feeling and the showing of emotions is not congruent. We hide things from others and sometimes from ourselves. A most lovely write Jacob

[jacob erin-cilberto]

Thank you for your words, Soren.
j.