The Poet's Quilt

I took a stich in the calico sky
And quilted a rainbow way up high.
I appliqued clouds and embroidered a sun
And looped in some raindrops one by one.

I designed some snow out of percale,
Made muslin sleet and gingham hail.
The moon had a smile on his big white face;
I used dotted swiss and framed him with lace.

I cut out some stars from a piece of old wool,
Made a midnight sky as black as all coal.
I sewed through the day and into the night.
Just about finished, I had some insight-

So I patched it with rhyme and threads of new prose
Dappled with life where stories arose
That were freckled and dotted with imagery
And multiple stanzas and verse that ran free.

Barb Gedman 11/20/03