thin red book

 

i have beside me
a thin red book

To: Florence Reid
Millbank Ontario
from: Aunt Maggie

Stonework of our house
was started on May 29th 1907.

and i look to my house
and how it is exploded
upon itself
exponential stuff

The baby was born
on 20th of December
1908.
His name was Kenneth Steard.
Allan Grieve died
April the 4th
buried the 7th 1908.
Allan was 16 years and 2 months old.

and i look to my house
my pages
my words
and how it is exploded
upon itself
exponential stuff

and lives and lives and lives
are laid in this thin red book
real feeling loving fucking laughing grieving lives

Grace Pelsh died
Aug 26th.
Buried Aug 1908,
was 11 months and 6 days old.
Her birthday was on Sept 19th.

things to remember
people now gone
 
gone, now, yes, 
but please—
remember 

Grandma Reid died.
Bellers born.
Threshing is the order of the day.

There was an awful thunderstorm
Aug 15 1910
and quite a bit of hail
about 0 in size
and some was a good bit larger.

and the hail does pelt
and we do run
and dodge
and duck
and we take to house

and my house
it is exploded

and she baked a sponge cake on July 26th 1911
and there were marks for her class
and Florence Reid did come third
and with a gloating asterisk:

*Emma Reid
with 362
did not pass.

thin red book

On October 4th 1911
I got the both of my legs scalded
and they did sting.
The teapot
hot
fell when i picked it up.

and i have had children broken
pulled from between my legs
and houses have had new corner stones laid
and marriages have been snapped in frame
and broken
and people too young have died
and hail has come
this size

0

and i look to my house

my pages

my words
and how it is exploded
upon itself
exponential stuff

thin red book