July 2, 2015

Poetry Friday--"Proverbial Wisdom"

This poem will be added to my Sketchbook Project collection of angel poems. I bought my first peaches of the summer. They were a bit hard. I figured they would ripen--if I waited patiently. It happens to me every year. I never learn.


Click on the image to enlarge for easier reading. © Diane Mayr, all rights reserved.

Here's the text in case you can't read it:
Proverbial Wisdom

Her mother always said,
"Patience is a virtue,
possess it if you can."
Yet, the first peach
to ripen has a soft spot.

She cuts away the rot,

chops what's left to
have on a bowl of cereal,
and tells her daughter,
"Sometimes even angels
in heaven are full of shit."

Head downeast where Donna at Mainely Write is hosting the Independence Day weekend Poetry Round-Up!
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25 comments:

  1. Sally MurphyJuly 2, 2015 at 11:45 PM

    lol. I didn't see the ending coming at all. Thanks for the laugh.

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  2. Margaret SimonJuly 3, 2015 at 8:31 AM

    Patience and peaches, summertime's lessons.

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    1. Diane MayrJuly 3, 2015 at 8:46 AM

      A ripe peach is my favorite fruit. It has such a short season, though, and patience isn't always possible! But a good peach can't be rushed.

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  3. Mary LeeJuly 3, 2015 at 9:42 AM

    For every proverb, a caveat!

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    1. Diane MayrJuly 4, 2015 at 10:16 AM

      And for every proverb, an equal and opposite proverb. Need an example? "Strike while the iron is hot." "Act In Haste Repent At Leisure."
      "It never thunders but it rains." "Clouds that thunder do not always rain."
      "A happy heart is better than a full purse." "A heavy purse makes a light heart."

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  4. Irene LathamJuly 3, 2015 at 11:25 AM

    Ooh, I, too, adore peaches and get so disappointed sometimes! I am loving this angel poems theme! Wonderful! xo

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  5. Linda BJuly 3, 2015 at 11:29 AM

    Patience doesn't always work, at least when one thinks one is being patient! You caught me at the ending, Diane!

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  6. Donna SmithJuly 3, 2015 at 5:28 PM

    Peaches aren't what they used to be - at least not in Maine where they are trucked long distances, u ripened to keep them from bruising in transit. They used to be available only in season and the juice would run down your arms and drip,off your elbows. Most fruit was like that - when I was a kid. Now it all requires patience, and most times it is not rewarded with the deliciousness that used to be.
    Oh, thanks for that ending. My second chance you've given me today to shoot latte out my nose.

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    1. Diane MayrJuly 4, 2015 at 10:18 AM

      Latte out one's nose is not something one wants twice in one day!

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  7. Julie July 3, 2015 at 7:35 PM

    We go all the way down to Eugene, Oregon, to get those kind of juice-dripping-down-your-arm peaches, Diane - worth the five hour drive! (Of course, our daughter lives down there, too, so that helps....) But oh, my, those peaches. You have to hit it just right - get them not hard, not overripe. Have you ever seen Eddie Izzard's routine about pears - trying to catch them at the exact moment they're ripe? Hilarious. As is your poem (keep the Angel poems coming!)

    If you're in the mood, here's a link to the Izzard skit about fruit in general - the bit about pearsstarts at about 4:30. and only lasts a minute or two.
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CCXNp-XWA6g

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    1. Diane MayrJuly 4, 2015 at 10:29 AM

      One of my fondest childhood memories is traveling down to Georgia to see relatives and stopping at a roadside stand. The warm, just-picked peaches, the juice dripping down my arm and off my elbow--heaven! (Maybe the subject for an angel poem?)

      Eddie Izzard was great. I especially like the comparison of an orange to Das Boot.

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  8. Carol VarsalonaJuly 3, 2015 at 9:28 PM

    Diane, your twist at the end was such a surprise that I had to laugh. The peaches that my husband bought are so sweet that I feel like I am eating candy. Back to Spring's Symphony designing.

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    1. Diane MayrJuly 4, 2015 at 10:30 AM

      Yup! Back to work. We're looking forward to the "Symphony."

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  9. CarolJuly 4, 2015 at 8:49 AM

    Mmmm, fresh, ripe peaches. But then, that surprise at the end. You made me laugh!

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  10. Michelle Heidenrich BarnesJuly 4, 2015 at 9:30 AM

    You are SO the mother in this poem, Diane. That last line is a dead giveaway. ;)

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    1. Diane MayrJuly 4, 2015 at 10:36 AM

      Ya think? Actually, my late mother was chocky-block full of sayings. It amazes me how many. But, my father had a few, too. Here's one on patience: "Be like a doctor and have patients." Another angel in heaven who was full of...

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    2. Michelle Heidenrich BarnesJuly 7, 2015 at 8:34 PM

      Just read this reply, Diane. Made my night!

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  11. Author AmokJuly 4, 2015 at 11:06 AM

    Just yesterday, I had to throw out a mealy peach. Why, why, why do we keep buying unripe peaches at the supermarket when there is a wonderful farm-stand just up the road? In this case, I think it's the big stores that are full of it -- selling the promise of delicious fruit and failing to deliver.

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    1. Diane MayrJuly 4, 2015 at 11:12 AM

      So true. And, since there are no local peaches ready, then I for one, really need that dose of patience!

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  12. Robyn Hood BlackJuly 4, 2015 at 12:46 PM

    Ending got me, too - ha!
    Happy to report that down here, near the SC/Georgia border, you can still get some drip-worthy peaches. And surely they must have peaches in Heaven., ripe ones...

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  13. Bridget MageeJuly 4, 2015 at 1:45 PM

    Ha-ha-ha! So true - about the peaches and the angels! Thanks for the belly laugh, Diane! =)

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