Day Writing by Heather Hamilton-Maude: May
The belt came off the dryer
The tractor, it won’t start
The last cow refuses to calve
Nobody in town has the right parts
If it was scattered across the living room all winter, it’s now in the yard
The culprits are long gone on a full-fledged adventure
Random reports back while grabbing snacks
Bedtime before sundown, oh, what a downer
Husbands are grouchy
No one dares ask why
It changes by the minute some days
Trying to figure it out will make someone cry
Fields need planted, and fertilized and sprayed
Brandings are being scheduled at a rate of three per Saturday
Fences need fixed, water gaps put in
If it would just rain it might feel like a win
Year-end concerts, field trips and permission slips galore
Overlapping with summer sports, swim days and more
Meetings and gatherings and volunteer trainings
Don’t these people have anything else going?
Road construction that feels like a personal vendetta
Whoever put out cones has never pulled a trailer
Irritated phone calls asking what’s taking so long
Let’s ask the flagger, he’s surely known all along
If you have a little time, there’s one dry cow needs gathered
The mouse nest in the tank overflow is becoming a hazard
I’m out of clean jeans, and socks
Watch the kid’s stuff, their pockets are plumb full of rocks
If any of this sounds like your place
May I remind you, this weekend is Mother’s Day
And whether she’s a literal mother, or not
Show some appreciation to the woman who deals with a lot
This is a good time for a token of gratitude
Perhaps a gift, a card, or moment of quiet solitude
After all, if you make it through May
It is followed by June, and you’ll need her to help put up the hay.