“When Field Work is Done” published at Manuela Timofte’s blog In A Love World

On By Mike U.In Poetry

Greetings, folks. My poem “When Field Work is Done” has been published on Manuela Timofte’s In A Love World blog. Many thanks, Manuela, for your generous support of my poetry. Much appreciated.

“When Field Work is Done”
© 2021 by Michael L. Utley

When field work is done and soil tells
A tale of fragrant earth in russet tones
When ground-mist hunkers in secluded dells
And eventide descends upon the swells
Of solemn and discordant distant bells

I follow god-beams west, these tired bones
Sun-gilded in the cool remains of day
As fields pass beside the cobblestones
And honey-hives a-swarm with buzzing drones
And cudding cow in pasture lows and moans

The neighbor’s barn, a faded sun-bleached gray
Leans sleepily as I approach the bend
Where cobblestones succumb to moistened clay
And farm cats mouse-hunt stealthily in hay
And foals and piglets gambol as they play…

You can read the rest of my poem here:

When Field Work is Done

Also, please consider following and subscribing to In A Love World, a place where wonderful poetry abounds.

18 thoughts on ““When Field Work is Done” published at Manuela Timofte’s blog In A Love World”

  1. conifers stand ready to defend.. and yet nothing shields us from that inner pain and isolation. There are so many memorable lines in this poem. The saddest part, of course, is the ending.. as I read it. I felt that sentiment so strongly that work has become my daily escape from my own solitary existence. This is a brilliant poem, Mike.

    Congratulations on the publication. It’s always a pleasure to read you.

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    1. Thanks, Nigel. I was in Robert Frost mode here, writing about nature, but I can’t seem to escape this overarching theme of loneliness in whatever I write. It crept into this piece, inspired by living alone while working at the farm, knowing after a hard day’s toil there would be no one there at the house when I returned. Same with other periods when living on my own and attending college or tech school or working jobs. It would really get to me sometimes, I won’t lie, but after a while I came to accept my predicament. Humans are social creatures, and on a fundamental level we need others around us to feel whole. Social isolation–be it from deafness and introversion and depression/PTSD (as in my case) or for any other reason–affects us no matter how much we try to believe otherwise. I liked the contrast in this piece between tranquil pastoral nature and the turmoil of the narrator’s inner being. I’ve known that feeling standing beneath the moon, exhausted after a long day, knowing a dark, empty house awaits. Sometimes I almost couldn’t bear to go home anymore.

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    1. Thank you so much, Peggy. It’s always a delight to see you drop by to say hello. It makes this old recluse smile. I hope things are good in your part of the world, my friend. I appreciate you. 😊

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