Late afternoon sun warming a wind
fluttering scarves she had hung
on the line to dry.
There is not enough green
to call it full spring,
so the brightest colors come
from a yellow scarf
one with red roses
scattered in no particular pattern
and another with pink flowers
on a field of blue,
both gently used and well worn.
She is most fond of a handkerchief
that had belonged to her father.
Years ago she had washed it,
along with a red sweater,
it remained a pinkish red all this time.
She loves that handkerchief
because it reminds her of the day
he had discovered her mistake
and found her crying with embarrassment.
Rather than be angry
he had scooped her up into his arms
and forgiven her completely
although, he never really let it go
reminding her of that fiasco often
even when she was a woman
with children of her own.
He’d call her to say it was red hankie day.
They’d laugh sharing that memory.
She uses it herself now that he is gone
A bright treasure fluttering in the wind
today, still imbued with her father’s love,
remains a lovely shade of red.
©04/19/2019
Judith A. Sears
Inspiration for this poem was a watercolor painting I did in a painting class I took with my friend Kathy. To my knowledge I never mistakenly turned my fathers handkerchief red. That is not to say that I would have never done such a thing. My father forgave me plenty of other things. I gave this painting to my mother on her 91st birthday, she’s forgiven me many things, too, jas
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