A Cold Hearth

[ellajam]

Hi, this hit the spot for me. It brought me to the cold morning when children are expected to fend for themselves. The notes below are only to point out why I like it so much.

Four a.m., and the farmyard reveille has rallied the children;
it is dark, and Mother insists that lights are used only for necessary tasks.  Finding
slippers must be done by touch, as mats do little to stop the winter seeping into bare feet.  
L1 made me hear the rooster at the moment of barest light, they don't wait for true sunup. L2 says poverty, fuel is expensive and/or hard to come by. L3: It's cooold.

The kitchen fire shows no glow of coals.  Father, drunk, forgot to bank it
again.  Little James rakes the cold ash out of the way while Jenny fetches kindling from the box by the door.  
In the copper on the ledge, last night's stew has congealed in rebuke to Mother, 
who did not salt it satisfactorily.  The tea in the kettle has ice on the top.  
Father's drunk and if Mother isn't also she's unhappy or distracted enough to not even care about being a good cook. Salt preserves food, as does keeping it cooking for days, she's failed on both.

The children set the teepee and stuff it with last week's news.  Jenny warms her hands
under her arms -- matches don't grow on trees, says Father, and one mustn't 
waste them with fumbling fingers.  
I only paused on teepee for the time it took to finish the sentence, then I clearly saw the kindling stuffed with paper, probably a serious reach for young children. It's so cold she can't trust her grip.


She leans in, ready to strike, and takes a breath.  The cold hearth smells of inevitability,
accusation and despair.
Her face into the box, breathing in the scent that is the opposite what we dream of: warmth, stability, support.


The match sparks, and it begins anew.
Another day.

Thanks for posting this. As a response to a comment that a cold hearth has no smell, this poem was perfect for me, it made something worthwhile from what seemed like nonsense to me, and I appreciate that.