Moon in the Firs, Albertson Road
Fisherman’s Rib
sounds like it might be a shell
washed up on the beach,
or the clang of a bell that swings
with the swells on a ship.
It could be one of those conditions
from not enough vitamins
while on a voyage.
But it is a knitting stitch,
known for being extra thick and warm.
When knitting,
yarn keeps from unraveling
by the process of continuing to knit.
This is the action of creation,
performed by the harvesters, the candlemakers,
the bakers, the fishermen.
Like the yarn I hold in my hand,
moving from the sheep
to the skein to the needle,
to the fisherman on his way
out to sea.
_____________
Julie Shulman
Review by Patricia Nelson
I love the conversational tone of the extended metaphor and the simplicity of the language. Also the musicality of lines three and four and the way the hard and soft sounds of the words used there evoke the sounds of the actions described.