Woman's poems

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IRENE’S STORE
For awhile, my mom, Irene
Owned the only store
In the town of Boulder, Utah
She had everything in that store
That you could think of
Groceries, blocks of taste cheese
Levies, cowboy boots
Lasso rope by the foot
Cattle vaccine, pocket knives
Sweet’s candy and cookies
And bread brought by
The mail truck
You could get gas
By pumping up five gallons by hand
Then shooting it down to your tank
You could even get a tire
Fixed at Irene’s store
Or darn good instructions
On how to do it yourself
But best of all were those
Two tables filled with arrowhead
Where you could sit with a cold coke
Or a beer and talk about everything
We five girls, mama’s helpers
Were often there starting
Or getting in on wild conversations

There were more things discussed
In that store than anyplace in town
…maybe in southern Utah, including church
In that store we could discuss anything
I remember Daddy cussing a lot
About all the talk going on
Mama liked to have fun
And you could always hear her
Musical laughter ringing out
High above everyone else
I think mama’s laughter just
Made people feel good
And that’s why so many people
Stopped by so often
Daddy tried to get Mama to
Take the doorbell off the store
So we could have one meal
Without someone coming to the store
But she never did and “Ding dong.”
Somebody always had to
Jump up and run, usually her

Mama was the first mayor of Boulder
So we talked a lot about the town
She helped get the first water system in
And we stopped scooping mice
Out of that old cement cistern
She talked Dad into giving
The spring from the upper ranch
For great tasting drinking water
That needed no chemicals
It’s still the greatest tasting
Water in Southern Utah

Mama became the first
President of the Utah Cowbelle’s
And even helped think up that name
She got bored with the Cowboys
Having all the conventions and talk
And I remember that first
Worn out Cowbelle Beef Cookbook
That had some of my mom’s tasty recipes
Including Hunter’s Delight

What chance did we five girls have
Growing up in a store like that
Everybody coming by to see us
Everybody talking about everything
Some adventure always going on
Always meeting somebody new
Teasing, joking, flirting having fun
I know some of us are still
The biggest talkers around
Hoping to spread a few new ideas
Still looking for new skills or new truths
Discussing things that should
…or maybe, shouldn’t be talked about
And laughing all the time just like Mama
We became fearless just like her
She let me climb the highest ledges
My other sister chased wild steers
Another nursed sick people and animals
Right in that little store, just like Mama
My older sister launch forbidden subjects
We could debate with the best of them
We still like to have that fun
and doing it when we get a chance
Having those three day marathon talks
them most folks can't stand
But I still wonder about those “hot rocks”
That those uranium hunters brought in
That Mama used let us tests
With her Geiger counter
I can’t really blame Mama
For how I turned out
Restless, curious, seeking, adventurous
Looking for a cause, a party or a laugh
Some have said, "Wild and crazy."
….Just being raised in Irene’s Store
…Linda King 2/18/2010
　
　
　
　
DEAR MAMA
Hello dear, dear mama
How old you are, dear mama
How very, very old
You eat, you sleep, you wait
You wait for your
Return to the other world
You wait to return to
When you were young
And beautiful
And danced
The night away in
The arms of love
Dear Mama
Since you can never answer
It sometimes seems
As if you have already gone
Anyway in your mind
You are already there
Dancing away in some
Beautiful ballroom
And the next dancer
Is waiting
And watching you
Wanting their next dance
You, so lively
You, such a good dancer
You, with that beautiful laughter
Ringing like chimes
Over the top of the music

Can you remember
When the time comes
To dance away
From tired bones
And tired flesh
And a tired mind
That no longer obeys
Your command
Dear Mama
Dear, dear Mama
I thought of you tonight
Lonesome in your room
I thought of you this morning
And the delicious fluffy
Biscuits you used to
Make for breakfast
I thought of you when
I took a shower
And saw the rail
You used to hold on to
And I thought that
Someday I, too, would be old
My knees and joints
Refusing to hold me up
And I wished I had
My Mama for company
To kick around the house
To laugh or even argue with
And I grieved that I could not
Bring you home again
Dear, dear, dear Mama
Love,
…Linda 10/22/2000
　
　
　
　
　
THE UNSUNG WOMEN OF THE WEST

We’re the unsung women who came out West
We built our towns and made our nest
We had ten kids, we birthed in pain
Without a doctor or going insane
We got up early, he was still in bed
Started the fires and made the bread
We milked the cow, we fed the cat
Slopped the hogs to make them fat
We mopped the floors and cooked the food
And then we prayed to set the mood
We churned the butter and made cottage cheese
Picked he berries and shelled he peas
We grubbed the sage, we chopped the weeds
We hoed the garden and sowed the seeds
We squashed the bugs, we killed the weevil
We fought the blight and other evil
We dug the carrots and picked the ‘maters.
Shucked the corn and dug the ‘taters
We picked the fruit, we bottled the jam
We pickled the beets and cured the ham
We burned the trash and grubbed the thistle
Picked up the yard clean as a whistle
We planted the trees, shrubs and roses
Then bathed the kids and wiped their noses
We raised the chicken and cleaned the coop
Chopped off their head to made the soup
We made the quilts, wove the rugs
Knitted socks and passed out hugs
We sewed the clothes and crocheted lace
At the county fair we took first place
We shot the deer and dried the jerky
Baked pumpkin pie to go with turkey
The dogs we raised all knew “sig’em”
When they bit someone we had to lick’em
Into the barn we brought in hay
Stacked it high without no pay
We rode for cattle with our pack mule
We brand the calves and tagged the bull
We watered the fields and built sod dams
We nursed those doggie calves and lambs
We dressed as ladies with hats and curls
Charmed the men and giggled like girls
We talked in church and then, by gosh,
On top of that was the waterboss
We ran for office, helped the poor
Collected the funds from door to door
We taught the kids, went over their lessons
Took them to church to receive their blessings
We raised our kids to do what’s right
We made them share, we stopped he fights
We gave Grandpa a helping hand
Put him to bed when he could hardly strand
We helped birth babies, calmed the fears
Laid out the dead and dried the tears
For hired men we cleaned and cooked
Then at night we read a book
We filled the cellar to last all winter
Brought it up to serve for dinner
We curried the horses, trained the dog
We bucketed the coal and brought in logs
When it came spring, things went outside
We cleaned the windows, walls and hides
We papered our walls, moved the toilet
When something didn’t work, then we’d oil it
To do our wash we made soap from lie
We scrubbed, blued, wrung, then hug to dry
We wrangled our cowboy who wanted to play
Danced all night then worked all day
There’s almost nothing we can’t do
Inside, outside…night time too
As women go we are the best
The unsung women who built the west
By Ann Reynolds and Linda King…Sisters

IRENE’S STORE