
rain, they say, is the
heaven pouring
blessings. when i
was a child, it means
flood, tickling my
chubby ankles, choking
my father’s chest
once. it means
waiting for free
food rations and escaped
shrimps from spilling
ponds. it is a
memorised, annual
struggle. a sweet,
repeating chapter
of our wooden,
dining table (too
small to sit eight
mouths) but was
never empty. not
even once.
—
There has been such a high quality of poems tonight. This one is up there – the details you pin there are amazing, and that final image of the wooden table, so central to family life, is fabulous.
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Oh you are so kind, Sarah. Thank you so much. ❤
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That you count your blessings through the struggle is a testament to your strength and to the power of gratitude. I love the ending: ‘never empty. not/even once.’ This is a true blessing and a beautiful poem.
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Thank you so much, Ingrid. I believe we need more of gratitude, especially this time.
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really love how you’ve done this! Shared a tough life and turned it around 🙂
Your wooden table brought back a flood of memories for me … our large wooden one had 6-12 squeezed around it at any time! We had lots of foster brothers ..
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Oh wow!!! That’s a lot of seats but it was fun right? Thank you for sharing dear Kate. ❤
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I have no idea how Mum fed us all on a very meagre budget but nobody was turned away ❤
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Mums got magic wands. They can make things possible for their kids. ❤
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I think you’re right 🙂
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stay safe. dear one!
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thanks Rosema, you too 🙂
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❤ ❤ ❤
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A wonderful portrait of living and surviving with a large and loving family. I love the opening lines, setting the scene, especially the flood tickling chubby ankles, the free food rations and escaped shrimp – doing what has to be done, and the final image of the too small wooden dining table that was never empty.
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Ah. I love the large and loving family. It is true. Thank you for highlighting those details, Kim.
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I really love this! Blessings are NOT what we think and often are masked in disguise.
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Such a creative way to put it, Mary. Thank you!
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It’s obvious a lot of thought went into your selfie poem … you dug deep and the result is poetry that deeply resonates.
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I am glad it resonated, Helen. Thank you!
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LOVE!! I grew up poor and can relate. The blessings in this poem are abundant!! ❤️
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Ah thank you so much, dear!
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Touching memories. speaking fondly of the family table and many mouths, yet never empty. Beautiful write.
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Thank you so much, Beverly.
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We all have have much to be grateful for ReWri, if we look close enough — which sometimes is required.
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So true, Rob. Thank you so much for dropping by.
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This is deeply touching, Rosemarie! ❤️ Your resilience shines through in this exquisite poem.
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thank you for your kind words, Sanaa!
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A great poem of nostalgia and humor. Love the chubby little ankles splashing in the water. I bet you were a cute little one. Eight children is a lot of mouths to feed! Well done!
dwight
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Aww. My mom will say I was cute. Haha. Thank you, Dwight!
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:>)
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🙂
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Awweee… heartfelt and beautifully penned dearie. I love the rhythm of this piece.
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Thank you, dearie!
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The table that was never empty reminds of the loaves and fishes story from The Bible. Manna from heaven is something to be grateful for indeed. Sad to imagine watching for escapees from the shrimp pond so you’d have something to eat.
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Your comment is a blessing, Ms. Jade. It was a struggle but it is now a memory, thank you to the Manna from heaven.
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🙂 You are very welcome.
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❤ ❤ ❤
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A beautiful and realistic portrait of life with a big family. Many more mouths to feed but also many more moments of joy. Wonderfully written, Rosema 🙂
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So true, dearie! Thank you so much. Stay safe!
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