April 25, 2014

Poetry Friday--A Sign of Spring

Last Saturday, the Swan Boats of Boston's Public Garden opened for the 2014 season. The boats are a classic Boston tourist stop and have been in operation since 1877.

I'm sure you are all familiar with Robert McCloskey's Make Way for Ducklings and the role the swan boats have in Mr. and Mrs. Mallard deciding to take up residence in the Public Garden. McCloskey's book is how I first learned of the swan boats.

I read the news of the 2014 opening and this poem demanded to be written! Please note: this poem is not for a Make Way for Ducklings intended audience!

Click on the image to enlarge for easier reading. © Diane Mayr, all rights reserved. Early 1900s photo courtesy Library of Congress.

This week, Tabatha Yeatts is hosting the Round-Up at The Opposite of Indifference. You don't want to miss it!

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25 comments:

  1. Gillena CoxApril 25, 2014 at 10:03 AM

    nice and 'touristy' in Tobago its glass-bottom boats used for visiting
    the Bucco Reef

    the engine hushed -
    the sashay of different
    kinds of fish tails

    viewers awed to speech defects
    intone their oohs! and aahs!

    have a nice Weekend

    much love

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    1. Diane MayrApril 25, 2014 at 5:40 PM

      Thanks for the poem, Gillena!

      I put T & T on my bucket list.

      Delete
  2. Buffy SilvermanApril 25, 2014 at 10:31 AM

    Love the contrast you've drawn between the moneyed ladies and the workers with muscled calves and glistening sweat.

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    1. Diane MayrApril 25, 2014 at 5:42 PM

      I know that in the early 1900s, ladies often traveled together. I imagined a small group of ladies, without a male escort, may have found their way to the swan boats!

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  3. TaraApril 25, 2014 at 12:33 PM

    A difftrent view of those boats - but just as graceful, in its own way.

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    1. Diane MayrApril 25, 2014 at 5:45 PM

      I rode on the swan boats once, and the only memory I have of the brief trip is of the calves of the guy pedaling the boat. Unforgettable!

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  4. KeriApril 25, 2014 at 12:47 PM

    Thanks for the laugh! Scandalous "ladies" -- INDEED! ;-)

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  5. Michelle Heidenrich BarnesApril 25, 2014 at 1:14 PM

    From my Boston days, I remember seeing these boats often. Never did get around to taking a ride though... clearly, I didn't realize what I was missing.

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    1. Diane MayrApril 25, 2014 at 5:46 PM

      Maybe some day you'll make the trip north again!

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  6. BJ LeeApril 25, 2014 at 1:28 PM

    ah, you've brought me back to the Common! Boston/Cambridge is my spiritual home. Love the swan boat poem. I have one about the swan boats in my files somewhere too. THank you!

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  7. Andrea MurphyApril 25, 2014 at 3:44 PM

    Used to ride the boats every year as a kid. Never did think to turn around and check the power source.

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    1. Diane MayrApril 25, 2014 at 5:48 PM

      I remember how hard it was pedaling a little 2-seater boat on Harvey Lake in Northwood. The thought of pedaling a half-dozen or more people boggles my mind.

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  8. Linda BApril 25, 2014 at 6:41 PM

    I rode the swan boats with my students, quite a wonderful ride, and wish I had had your poem to imagine older times, Diane. Love the contrasting cultures.

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  9. Matt Forrest EsenwineApril 25, 2014 at 6:51 PM

    I can see them now! Superb way of describing them, Diane - although I think you display a but more of an appreciation for the physique of the drivers than I do!

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  10. Violet N.April 25, 2014 at 10:44 PM

    Oh this ladies of privilege! (I love how you complete the package by adding your poems to the photos.)

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  11. Violet N.April 25, 2014 at 10:47 PM

    Oops, I meant Oh those ladies of privilege...

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    1. Diane MayrApril 26, 2014 at 8:17 AM

      It's funny, Violet, but I read your oops exactly the way you meant to write it! A big part of reading is the expectation.

      Delete
  12. Mary LeeApril 26, 2014 at 6:57 AM

    What a contrast!

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    1. Diane MayrApril 26, 2014 at 8:19 AM

      Now as then, we seem to be a society of great contrasts.

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  13. RuthApril 27, 2014 at 6:05 AM

    So THOSE are the sights they take in! Nice poem!

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