ThayerRags

Storm Coming

My treadles are readied and waiting to sew,
plus two or three handcranks to stitch on the go,

All oiled and threaded and tuned up for sure,
prepared for a visit from Mother Nature.

The Weatherman says there’s a storm on the way,
prepare for the worst, that’s all he would say.

The part that is most troubling about his warning,
he said “freezing rain” could hit us one morning.

It seems like ice storms happen nearly each year,
and second to tornados, they bring the most fear.

An area becomes frozen under a blanket of ice,
at first kind of pretty, but later not so nice.

The weight of the ice brings down many things,
trees and highlines are common victims it seems.

Broken branches are seen as one looks around,
and utility lines have been brought to the ground.

The power could be out for several days in a row,
that sure brings a change to my life on the go.

Shelter, warmth, and spare water are first on my mind,
without these few basics, I could be in a bind.

But with those things in place, as best as I can,
what to do with my time is the gist of my plan.

The carnage outside, I have generally found,
Is best left alone, until all of it’s down.

So at home here I sit waiting hour by hour,
what else can I do without any power?

There are books and board games and cards to play too,
but after hours of doing those, what else can I do?

I can play games or read, but if I take the notion,
I can spend part of my time with my treadle in motion.

Fabric stitching and sewing is one of my things,
and I happen to have people-powered machines,

The hours will seem shorter, the deafening quiet be gone,
as me and my machine together function as one.

There’s a peaceful sound that to me’s the attraction,
of a treadle or handcrank that’s put into action.

So, I’ll pick a machine that will best do the task,
and quietly sew until this ice storm has past.

I have lots of fabrics that some say I hoard,
so with thread and machines, I don’t think I’ll be bored.

So if for a while, you hear nothing from me,
I’ll just be here sewing and not on my PC.

CD in Oklahoma