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Paulus Constantijin La Farge, The Grote Markt (Market
Square) at The Hague, 1760
Compliments of The National Gallery of Art, London
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My grandmother liked to purchase her groceries from Glassman’s,
a locally-owned grocery store in Iowa City. She shopped on Friday mornings,
before Mr. Glassman closed for the Sabbath. Mr. Glassman gave two kittens to my
sister and me, and if he had a lot of liver left on Friday, he would wrap some
up and give it to our grandmother for the Blackie and Tiger. Sometime I should
write a poem about the kindly grocer who served my family well.
As a child, I was excited when we received the new
catalogues from Sears and Montgomery Ward. My sister Dorinda and I played a
game in which we imagined we each had ten children (5 boys and 5 girls, each,
if I remember correctly). I have forgotten the names of all my imaginary
children except my triplet girls. I named them Katherine Marie, Katherine
Louise and Katherine Annette. Or was it Kathleen Marie, Kathleen Louise and
Kathleen Annette? That was a long time ago! I am certain, however that their
nicknames were Kit, Kathy and Kay. Dorinda and I sat for hours with those
catalogues, picking out clothes for our children, furniture for their bedrooms,
birthday or Christmas presents, etc. Catalogue shopping was quite popular in
those days.
You may shop at a street market, department store, pharmacy,
grocery store, dress shop, yard or garage sale, flee market, or on-line
merchant, or buy cookies from the girl scout or magazines school child next
door raising money for a school field trip. There are many ways to shop.
There are some famous poems that talk about shopping. Here
are links to two of them:
Jane
Sellman has written a clever poem about shopping from Harriet Carter, one of
the companies that sends catalogues in the mail.
Harriet Carter,
Distinctive Gifts Since 1958
Harriet
Carter, I’ve spent many happy hours looking through the colors of your
catalogue.
I’ve spent
hundreds of dollars on your distinctive gifts. You’ve sent me so much
in
return.
The Pooch Polo Shirt (Rose, Medium) for
my dog, Winston.
The Plaid Slippers That Mop, which I
wear every morning in my kitchen.
The
Bathroom Cabinet Super-Organizer, which currently holds
Scott
Bathroom Tissue (three rolls), Dove Moisturizing Shampoo, towels,
face
clothes, and a Deluxe Beautiful Back Scrubber.™
Harriet
Carter,
you have
dispensed distinctive gifts since 1958: the Mighty Putty™ —
“Lets You
Fix, Fill & Seal Virtually Anything”; the Pet Screen Door —
“Lets
Your Pet In and Out Anytime”; the Toe “Stretchers” —
“Give
You Stronger Feet in Just Ten Days.”
Harriet
Carter, because of you, I have “stacked, stored, and safely transported”
deviled eggs
added
“five inches to the waistband” of my best blue skirt
used “that
wasted space atop” the television
heard the
“faintest whisper with new clarity.”
Harriet
Carter, Oh, Harriet Carter
Thank you
for the purification of the air in my house and for the automatic
irrigation
of my plants and for keeping my food fresh for longer than scientists
will admit
possible and for supporting my sagging breasts and protecting
my
arthritic knees and for such technological wonders as the Automatic Birdbath,
the
Birdbath Protector, the Toothpaste Tube Squeezer, and the Three-Section
Microwave
Plates, which come in sets of four, each plate a different color.
Harriet
Carter, to you, I sing all praise and hosanna.
My house
is a monument to you. Nothing is ever thrown away or exiled
to
the hall closet.
Except for
the Vidalia Chop Wizard™ —“The Cook’s Best Friend.”
Which chopped boiled eggs, onions (both
Vidalia and other varieties),
carrots, sharp cheddar cheese, and
mushrooms
Which broke while I sliced pepperoni on
New Year’s Eve
Which I gently put in the trash on New
Year’s Day
Harriet
Carter, please forgive my one transgression.
~ Jane Sellman
This poem was first published in
Arsenic Lobster Poetry Journal (2013), pp. 30-31. © Jane Sellman.
Jane
Sellman is a Writing Consultant at University of Maryland School of Nursing. She
is a freelance writer and editor as well as a part-time teacher..
The July Challenge:
The July Challenge is to submit a poem about shopping—online
shopping, shopping “downtown” or at the Farmer’s Market, taking the commuter
train from the suburbs to the big city to buy Christmas presents, stopping at
the trading post along the highway in the West, . . . . whatever your shopping
experience might be.
Your poem may be free verse or formal. If you use a form,
please identify the form when you submit your poem.
Title your poem unless it is a form that does not use
titles. Single-space and don’t use lines that are overly long (because the blog
format doesn’t accommodate long lines). Read previous poems on the blog to see
what line lengths can be accommodated.
You may submit a published poem if you retain copyright, but please include publication data. This
applies to poems published in books, journals, newspapers, or on the Internet.
The deadline is July 15. Poems submitted after the
deadline will not be considered. There is no charge to enter, so there are no
monetary rewards; however winners are published on this blog. Please don’t
stray too far from “family-friendly” language (some children read this blog).
No simultaneous submissions, please. You should know by the end of the month
whether or not your poem will be published on this blog. Decision of the judge
or judges is final.
The poet retains copyright on each poem. If a previously
unpublished poem wins and is published elsewhere later, please give credit to
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law, the copyright belongs to the writer unless the writer assigns it to
someone else.
How to Submit Your Poem:
Send one poem only to
wildamorris[at]ameritech[dot]net (substitute the @ sign for “at” and a . for
“dot”). Put “July Poetry Challenge
Submission” in the subject line of your email. Include a brief bio that can be printed with your poem if you are a
winner this month. Please put your name
and bio under the poem in your email.
Submission of a poem gives permission for the poem to be
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indent the poem or center it on the page. It helps if you submit the poem in the format used on the blog
(Title and poem left-justified; title in bold (not all in capital letters);
your name at the bottom of the poem). Also, please do not use multiple spaces
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Poems shorter than 40 lines are generally preferred but
longer poems will be considered.
© Wilda Morris
