Book of Hours, pp 1-4 (WC)

Wendy Cabell, February 5, 2021, feast day of the (above) Seeker of (or Recovery of) the Perishing Icon of the Mother of God, the Elets- Chernigov Icon of the Mother of God, Saint Agatha of Sicely, Saint Agatha Hildegard of Carinthia, and Saint Theodula. Image from here.)

Book of Hours (pp. 1-4)

When I was a child, the windows

were open. Lots of Sun, the carpet

my field. Hum of soap operas nearby.

And Mom says "Good morning sunshine",

"Goodnight Wenny Penny".

In between, mudpies line backyard, my

kitchen. Mom pretends to taste. 'Till

wet earth's scent, 

warm with Sun,

is carried, inside.

Dolls waiting, you know. Need dressing and

decorating. They're my paper if none is

handy, for the crayons all awaiting,

in their pretty little row.

Bedtime they are still with me. Colors

swirl behind eyelids. While stillness settles

outside the window, our faithful collie Bonnie

standing guard.

*From prompt: Freewrite as spurred by Yehuda Amichai's When I was a Child, setting the scene of one's childhood by a series of sensory memories, woven together somehow with an image/theme; from Esther Lin's Quarantine Write-in (Hugo House, Seattle), February 4, 2021.